Kuroi Kaze: Fuujin's chosen
by Airheaded dude
Summary: For every deed there is a price be it good or evil. Watch he whom the winds answer to his beck and call, The Black Wind shall walk this earth and he shall change the very foundation of humanity with just a flash of a seal. Heavy Metal rewrite
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Beginning

* * *

"Fuinjutsu: Shiki Fuujin! (Sealing arts: Dead Demon Reaper Seal!)"

The Kyuubi no Kitsune, with all of its power, wailed in and howled in pain, its primal instinct is telling it of its downfall, the hand of the Death God reached for its soul, grabbing it in a very harsh manner and began tugging the ethereal life force of the beast. It stared in hate at the one who had made a deal with the Death God, it looked at the man's spiky wild blonde hair, his battered tanned face and his spiky blue eyes and that awfully determined look, the beast's fiery red eyes then gazed at the young innocent that the man carried as its soul was pulled into it, but before it could do anything, it lashed out one of its tails at the child, causing three wounds that appeared on the blonde's cheeks, the monster inwardly smirked as the last of its soul was finally sucked from its body...

Hatake Kakashi sprinted towards the area where the Yondaime stood, faced and had done the impossible, he, a non-Uchiha, a non-Senju, had defeated the Kyuubi no Kitsune but it came with a terrible price...

As he jumped on the head of the Toad Boss, he kept his emotions under control even though it was difficult as the last person in his circle of friends was now succumbing to the inescapable hands of death,

'_No... There should be none of that in the battlefield.' _Thought Kakashi finally, on the top of the Toad Boss'head.

The scare crow Jounin knelt down, as the man that stood on the top of the Boss of Toads, was now sitting down and slowly laid down holding his own son protectively, wearing a melancholic smile on his face

"Sensei..." Said Kakashi and the man turned his gaze at his silver haired student

"Kakashi, just look at little Naruto... Isn't he so strong to have lived the attack of the Kyuubi? He even has the scars to prove it." Asked the blonde leader as he never felt prouder of his own son, who was silently sleeping

But then, with that pride, he began to shed his tears, the strongest of the village was weeping for his child as he held it close to his face, he was about to leave the world, he was about to leave his son, his wife, his village

"I'm sorry, son, I'm so sorry, if the Kyuubi didn't attack, none of it would have happened, you'd still have your dear old dad..." Said the man

"Minato-sensei..." Was all Kakashi could say

"Don't hate me for this Naruto, I wanted to do what was best, and I wanted you to survive even without me." Said Minato as the baby began to cry as well

"Shh... Naruto, don't cry, I'll always be there, don't worry, Otou-san will watch over you." Said Minato as he began to fade

"Kakashi... You are my witness, and by my last decree as Hokage, I want the village to treat my son, a hero, he is the jailor of the Kyuubi no Kitsune and the sole survivor of its attack on this day, he will inherit everything I have when he is in the right age, his name shall be Uzumaki Naruto until he is of same age as well. I want him, to grow up... In thewarmth of the village's love, I want him to exeprience love Kakashi, if not the love of his father, then at least the love of his mother and the village. That he put under the protection of the ANBU as he will likely be targeted by my enemies both in and out of the village."Said Minato smiling at the child and the baby, on instinct, gave out a toothless smile and a moved his little hands with mittens, Minato began to shed another tear.

Kakashi only nodded, he didn't want to break the news to the dying Hokage also, his wife had just died of childbirth and there was no one to look at the little child anymore, Sarutobi had forbidden him to do so, it would have broken the man's resolve.

"Hai, sensei, I'll do it, I'll tell the Sandaime that your last decree shall be fulfilled."Kakashi winced as another pang of guilt had struck him when he lied to his dying teacher, Kakashi was a realist, he had heard news of how Jinchuuriki were treated in their own villages, how can Konoha be different? Minato-sensei was a bit of an optimist, he wanted to see the good in people and he wanted the villagers to see the good in his son, without his name, Namikaze.

But sadly, as the genius he is, Kakashi had already foreseen the blonde's fate, he was to become the village pariah...

Minato began to pant heavily as he lied down on the frog's head, still holding his son, he could feel his heart, beating abnormally, but he wasn't afraid anymore, he had accepted his fate, and he slowly closed his eyes as the baby in his arms began crying again Minato began to speak although he began to speak weakly

"There, there... Naruto... Otou-san will be with you... Forever... Don't cry... Big boys... Don't have to cry..." Minato smiled

"Kakashi... Tell sensei when he arrives here... That the scroll at my side is for him... it is intended for Naruto to inherit... Once he is ready... And both of you... Be his mentor... Okay?" Minato smiled and closed his eyes in front of Kakashi as the Jounin squeezed his knuckles and bowed silently...

The Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, has honorably passed away and he left behind, his greatest and most proud legacy, his own son.

* * *

Konoha:

The Sandaime upon hearing the actions of the Fourth Hokage, bowed and solelmly took his place once again as the village Hokage, when he saw the active Hokage mounted the giant frog, he couldn't help but feel that it was his responsibility not Minato's as Minato had already a baby and his wife was resting, against his own occupation, it was Sarutobi who was supposed to die rather than Minato, he had a sarting family while the Sandaime had already children of his own and they were already working and able. He was a lso a former Hokage who knew the technique of sealing away the fox when Minato taught it to him, he had already knew the gist of the technique. He could feel his guilt slowly crawling up to him, the fact that he willingly allowed himself to not do anything and send his successor to his death, when he had the chance to redeem his past mistakes, Sarutobi would forever engrave this memory as another regret on his deathbed one day.

He looked outside the village seeing the gigantic toad appear from the walls of the village, with the townspeople celebrating when they all felt the malevolent presence of the Kyuubi no Kitsune vanish suddenly, Sarutobi did not feel like celebrating as the student of the former Hokage went down from Gamabunta's head to the office of the Hokage carrying a baby in his arms and then got back on the toad boss' head to get the body of the fourth.

As he saw the fourth's unmoving face, he was stricken with grief and guilt; never had he felt such grievance when he viewed Minato and then Naruto.

"Hokage-sama, Minato-sensei left a last decree as Hokage, please listen to what I have to say." Said Kakashi and me motioned the boy down to the older man's table as they discussed Naruto's inheritance and Minato's Legacy

During their talks, both Sarutobi and Kakashi were wary, Minato may have been loved by **MOST **of the villagers, but it didn't mean that he was revered and respected by all. On the contrary, many of the council had opposed his decisions, ranging from tax finances to territorial expansion, Minato had done what the council would have totally frown upon, primarily, the Sandaime's rival of his seat, Danzou, the man was bitter and downright mean. He was a war hawk, one who wants to gain power through force, an idea that the Sandaime and Minato had opposed every time. How Sarutobi loathed that man, Danzou was an advocate of the principle of utility, to use a tool to the best as it can possibly can and then disposing it once it had served its purpose or got broken.

In his musings, he had almost failed to hear his secretary and attendant call out to him

"Hokage-sama, the council wants a meeting with you right away"

The Sandaime only nodded as a strange wave of nostalgia had hit him

"I hate this job..." Said the Sandaime

When both men left the room, the Hokage had ordered several ANBU to guard the office, the ninja obliged and stepped at the side of the door guarding the room.

* * *

Inside the room, one man had appeared in a small gust of wind, he was thin, wearing a green obi, a green sleeveless Kimono, a green belt, green pants, and to top it all off, a green bandana, the man was holding a rather tall staff that were of the same appearance as that of Buddhist monks complete with the golden chime that sounded whenever the bottom had hit the ground. The man's appearance was thin; he had a pair of beady eyes, and wild brown hair, seemingly being controlled by the bandana. The man looked curiously at the blonde baby with a glint of mischief in his eyes

"I can see why that mortal choose you as the Kyuubi's container." Said the man, circling around the table as if examining the quiet and sleeping child on the office table

"But I just can't see why Amaterasu would choose you as the harbinger of change." Said the man placing a finger at his temple who began thinking

"Inari screwed up royally when he gave the Uchiha the power to control his most loyal servant. I don't even know **WHY** he chose to." Said the man

"With that, Amaterasu sent me to give you a bit of my power since you will be her instrument to save this world, she sent me to guide you, though honestly you are a bit too young and my last avatar received my power when he was already eleven."Said the man his hands glowed a luminous blue as he placed both of them on the blonde's chest

Instantly, the boy could feel the change in his body, as if something had disrupted it from its slumber, it began to cry as Kanji letters had appeared on his body, a kanji for north on his forehead, a kanji on his right shoulder for east, to his left shoulder was the kanji of West, and his lower chest at the middle had the Kanji for south.

When the chakra surge was felt, immediately, all of the ANBU members present near the office were placed on alert as they barged in to the office.

"Bastard, who the hell are you to try something to a child?" Asked one of the ANBU, the man turned around and laughed a little

"Nothing, I'm just giving little Naruto here, a power that he'll need once he starts being a ninja." Said the man as one of the ANBU blindly charged at him with sword drawn about to strike him down, the man simply blocked and parried the blow of the sword when he pushed the person away with just a flick of his staff

"How do you know his name?" Asked one of the members and the man just grinned, as his left foot stepped on to the edge of the window

"Because... I just do." He said with a grin on his face, he grabbed his bandana and a gust of wind blew him flying upwards

"Tell him one day, that Fuujin has taken a liking to Uzumaki Naruto, and that he will be Fuujin's avatar when the time comes!" Said the man, naming himself Fuujin and with another gust of wind, he vanished without a trace.

* * *

After the meeting with the Council:

Sarutobi had to contain his anger, the nerve of those people! He had entered the room of court where clan heads and council members were discussing the events that had occurred that night, they were murmurs going on about Naruto, where some ordered the child's execution, the others, choosing it to be honed as a weapon, he had heard this particular suggestion from Danzou whom the wise Hokage frowned upon. There were a minority of the members who wished to leave Naruto alone, he had suffered enough was what some of the members said, particularly the clan heads except the Uchiha since they were not part of the village council. But what was the most highlighted moment of the night in the meeting was the fact that the council members were playing the pointing finger game when they were discussing who on earth had unleashed the wrath of the Kyuubi no Kitsune

_Flashback:_

"_It is not entirely natural that the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. The last time that the Kyuubi appeared was when it was used in the battle of Shodaime and Uchiha Madara, resulting in the Uchiha's defeat, after that, the creature simply vanished! The Kyuubi was supposed to appear randomly anytime! Why did it have to appear in the lands of Hi no Kuni twice? The answer is simple, since the disappearance of the Mokuton Hijutsu and the Hokage Shiki, the Senju became vulnerable to the attack of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. The only thing that could control the beast now was that if there was a member of the Uchiha clan who has obtained a high level of degree of the Sharingan, how is this not truly possible?" Asked Homura standing up and raising from his seat_

"_Keep in mind you bastard that the Uchiha participated in the stalling of the fox, many of them died there!" Said Inuzuka Tsume frowning when she got to her seat_

"_Yes, but who says that most of them weren't aware of that fact? Remember out of all the clans here, the Uchiha had the least number of casualties, bordering to only twenty! That would make them terribly suspicious!" Said the woman, standing up and making her presence known, it was Koharu_

"_It still isn't enough to accuse them of such! Remember, it had been sixty four years since the fight in the Valley of the End and that the times of the Uchiha-Senju conflict are in the past!" Said Nara Shikaku_

"_True but the reason why we never wanted to let the Uchiha to get involved with the politics is so that they are placed in their own pedestal, away from the rights of governing the village, to let them know that the Senju rule all and that we are superior!" Said Danzou_

"_Your former beliefs about the superiority of the Senju are fading, already, most of the citizens of Konoha already have high regard of the Uchiha, you should know that times change! What the Shodaime and Nidaime did was only to prevent instability, they wanted the people to gain the trust of the villagers so that they can slowly assimilate with our lives, the Uchiha are not to be blamed in this conflict!" Said by _

_one, surprisingly, it was Hyuuga Hiashi. The Sandaime nodded as he grabbed another piece of paper was picked up from his seat_

"_About the matter with one Uzumaki Naruto..." Said Sarutobi and another set of shouts had began_

_Flashback ends_

Sarutobi was informed that Naruto was to be put to an orphanage, not in the guidance of his student Jiraiya and not in theguidance of the Yondaime's student, Hatake Kakashi, they had deemed the boy too dangerous and that he would be isolated from the ninja world as hopefully as they can, completely blowing off Minato's last wish for the blonde.

When he entered his office, the ANBU had reported what had happened and Sarutobi barged into the room, seeing the boy sleeping but what Sarutobi saw on the blonde's forehead was the character of North.

'_Fuujin... Huh?' _Thought Sarutobi seeing the mark on the boy's forehead faded into the calm and foreboding night...

* * *

Four years later:

One Uzumaki Naruto was running from the villagers, today was October Tenth, the day when the Kyuubi no Kitsune was defeated in the hands of the Yondaime Hokage, but to him, ever since he could remember, this was the day he had cursed most of all, the fact that the villagers would go in a night of folly and late into the night, the caretaker of the orphanage would kick him out of the establishment and the crowd would immediately initiate the beat-the-crap out-of-Naruto-till-he's-near-death-so-that-we-could-do-it-again-next-year part of the festival as a way to vent their anger, frustrations and grief to the blonde.

Naruto winced holding his shoulder who he felt it was limp, he couldn't exactly explain why he could feel the red energy whenever he felt pain, but when he let it go it felt perfectly fine again, as he flexed his arm, he could feel the tips of his fingers again opening and closing it again. He wondered in curiosity just how could anyone do it other than him? As he round up into a corner, he was met with a dead end with no way out, he glanced around, feeling dread and fear slowly overcoming his young and innocent mind, he began to let tears fall as he saw one of the mobs dragged him by his feet and unceremoniously dragged his body on the ground and then tossing him in the middle of the crowd

He then felt it, the mind shattering punch to the face followed by a sickening kick to the gut, another tossing member of the mob this time, tossed a torch at him effectively burning his left arm. The child howled in pain as the torture commenced. He felt all of it as he fell to the ground, but then, he couldn't cry, he couldn't move, he couldn't shout. As he was about to be hit with a rake on his head, an arm had caught the farming tool by its handle, it was an ANBU member who had a dog mask on.

"What...Is the meaning of this?" Asked the ANBU member as he flipped the man that sent him stumbling on the ground, chest first

"Tradition..." Said the man without a sense of tact and slur in his words

"Drunk to the point of a blackout, huh?" Said the masked nin as he chopped the man's nape effectively knocking him out

"Anybody else who would like to take a shot?"Asked the man and the mob began to take a step back and eventually run.

"Thought so..." Said the ANBU member as he then crouched down at the unconscious boy and held him in his arms. He disappeared into the night and went towards the hospital

Konoha hospital:

Everyone suddenly began the rush hours of the night in the emergency room, they were receiving patient after patient that had either a drinking incident or some that had undergone a complete blackout.

But what rally made them on their toes that night was the arrival of the infamous blonde child that they had every year, along with several attendants of the Hokage, along of course, the Hokage himself, who was absolutely irrate as the same thing as last year, yelling off orders to the attendants that he wanted the ones responsible to be reported to the Konoha interogation department.

"Every.Single.One." Replied the Hokage as he clenched his teeth as the doctors and the nurses continued to place several tubes into the blonde, and a few ointments to relieve the blonde of his burns. What surprised Kakashi though, was the fact that Naruto was sent to the operating room to have a chest thoracostomy.

"That Damage Naruto suffered with his ribs, caused him to have emphysema." Said the wise Hokage

"Kakashi, where did I go wrong with my decisions?" Asked Sarutobi and Kakashi only replied

"It wasn't your fault Hokage-sama. If at all, it was the villagers' fault, almost every decree that Minato-sensei gave in his dying hour, was not respected by anyone other than the shinobi population."

"I can only pray that Karma would not strike this village once Naruto breaks down from this." Said the wise old Hokage

"Me too... Hokage-sama, me too..."

A few days later:

Naruto was still unconscious, as the blood and fragments emptied from Naruto's chest and into a bottle at the botom, the tube connected to his chest was still sucking it all out.

As he continued his slumber, inside Naruto's mind, there was something going on...

_Naruto's mindscape:_

_The blonde child stood up from the murky waters of the tunnel as he sat up, he wondered in curiosity and walked against the flow of the current, his childish mind, aroused in wonder, he turned to the corner that he saw as the source of the current, and stood before the huge gate that had a paper with the word, 'Seal' written on it, the blonde chid tilted his head approaching the gate closer, within an arm's reach, he was about to touch the gate until a massive wave of pure red energy had forced its way out of the cage, sending little Naruto flying back and hitting the wall opposite of the cage, the blonde stood up as he saw that the red enerfy began to form, a huge claw and inside the cage, red monstrous slit eyes gazed at him, malice and destruction seeped in the air_

'_**So my jailor has finally come to see me... I'm moved.' **__Said the voice chuckling letting of an evil chuckle, Naruto felt his knees began to shake at the sheer malice that the creature was releasing._

_The monster laughed lightly the child's demonstration of fear, it made his soul contented whenever he saw the fear in a creature's eyes, it felt so... ALIVE!_

'_**That is right youngling, fear me... Tremble before me! I am destruction, I savor your warryness, I am your nightmare, I am the powerful, Kyuubi no Kitsune!' **__Said the fox as it laughed at the trembling blonde_

'_K-kyuubi no... Kitsune?' The blonde questioned_

'_**Yes child, I am that creature, the creature that sends people to endless nightmares, the plauge that killed thousands, the Natural disaster!'**__ Boasted the demon_

'_B-But why are you...'_

'_**Present here? Indeed, I would question that myself, had it not been for that blonde headed simian!' **__Exclaimed the Kyuubi_

'_Who are you talking about?' Asked Naruto_

'_**Your sneaky bearer, the Yondaime!'**__ Said the Kyuubi and Naruto frowned_

'_Yondaime... He sealed you into me?' _

'_**Yes, he sealed you into me! That man used something that has even more power than mine! He used the Shinigami and sacrificed himself so that he could seal me into his pathetic offspring!'**_

'_Who are you calling a pathetic offspring! You oversized plush doll!'_

'_**How dare you insult me! If it not for this damnable seal. I would've eaten you whole!'**_

'_Hah! You're ugly and your breath stinks!'Insinuated Naruto as he gave the best insult a four year old could ever hope to accomplish_

'_**That's it brat! You are going down!'**__Said the fox as he let his red chakra hand reach out and grab hold of Naruto, that is until the seal reacted forcing a spark that made the demon take the claw back and writhed in pain_

'_**Stupid Fucking seal!' **__Said the Nine tailed demon Kitsune with Naruto rolling on the wet floor, laughing_

'_You said Fuck!'Naruto said immarurely and the Kyuubi didn't react instead remained silent_

_In a way, the kitsune felt disgusted by the kid's immaturity but at the same time, felt something akin to guilt. Here he was being sealed in a child and its not the Kyuubi that is sealed inside the child that fear the people around him, it was the fear that they had for the child because they thought Naruto __**WAS **__the Kyuubi.The Kyuubi felt guilty alright, he was guilty because he let a child, of all creatures, be reverred as him! It was bad enough that he got sealed into a child, but to take his name inadvertedly by the said child, it was the biggest shame in his life,the nine tailed kitsune figured that if they feared the child so much, then he would make Naruto someone that they __**SHOULD **__fear he would hone the child's skill, become the most terrifying shinobi in existence, and he would start now, the child's mind was ripe for the taking._

'_**Tell me child, what is your desire?' **__Asked the fox giving the child a toothy grin that made the child shudder_

'_My... Desire?' Naruto had to admit, that was a... pretty deep word, he didn't know what he wanted yet! Just as he began shaking his head, he remembered the old man that was always sitting at the huge circular building in the middle of the village, he always had a kind attitude but he also saw how he commanded people that were standing around him, that and the fact that he was wearing that wicked cool hat. That had him wanting that position, now what was it, Ho... Ho... Hoka..._

'_That's it!' Said the blonde giving of a grin and scratching the back of his head_

'_I want to be Hokage!' Exclaimed the blonde that earned a grin from the fox himself_

'_**Excellent...' **__Said the Kyuubi chuckling darkly, the child wanted to be the best of the best does he? He squinted his eyes a little by the statement._

_The Kyuubi seemed, somewhat piqued with interest to the blonde's ambition. Very well,he wants power does he? Then he shall gladly give it_

'_**You say that you want to be the village leader, then I shall gladly give it to you, I will make you strong, before you ask why, I shall tell you the purpose now. I am a malevolent being, even though I serve Inari, I do whatever I desire. It is my prerogative, I am doing this because I am powerful, and being at the top in this realm is my desire, I will not allow even my jailor to be weak, anything that affiliates with me should be none the lesser,I have high expectations and I expect nothing but the absolute best!' **__Said the Kyuubi he then laughed wildly in his cage_

'_**Tomorrow, once you wake up, leave the hospital and leave no traces we will train in the wilderness, where your life would be in constant peril, but fear not, it will be there where you will learn how to fight and survive you will learn all there is to know about chakra but before that...'**_

_Naruto had listened intently at the demon, as it laid out its plans, if that was what it took to get that cool hat, then, hell, why not?_

Hokage's office:

Sarutbi squeezed the stressball firmly in his right hand as he smoked his pipe. Last night, like the year before, his pent up anger and frustrations had been released and the old man exploded in front of his ANBU, all members fell to their knees as the old man unleashed a killing intent that would've made them shiver and eventually fall. But they stood fast and obeyed the his orders when he ordered every single one of the participants of last night's mob be held accounted for and be taken to Morino Ibiki. The ANBU winced when they heard the man's name, it looked like it would be another fun week for the sadistic ninja as he delt with all that had befallen harm on Naruto.

It was obvious that the Hokage was not being merciful yesterday, and today, he would rather spend his time at home than in the office. He got up from his seat and then left his stress ball to his desk, he glanced around if there was anything missing and after finally being reassured, heads out the door and closes the office.

When Sarutobi had left the office, tere was an inkling feeling of dread that washed over him, there was something that felt wrong today, he didn't mind it in the end as he dismissed it as nothing more than stress.

But what Sarutobi didn't know was the fact that a small blonde haired, whisker marked boy was heading to his office right now and was about to walk away with something precious the Sandaime considers, his crystal ball...

Naruto had been informed by the Kyuubi that if he wishes to gain strength, then he would have to break the ties that hold him back, his own village, if he were to train, he would train in a selcuded area only coming back to the village from time to time to avoid suspicion. The blonde, only did as he was told because he knew that Kyuubi was the one that would give him strength and chooses to believe the kitsune since it had been the only thing that he could talk to.

Sneaking up the stairs, the blonde noted that there was no one in the premises, he slowly reached for the door of the Hokage's office finding it locked. Frustrated, the blonde looked for another entrance until he had found one, the air vents. He crawled inside and navigated through the tightly compressed hallways towards the Hokage's office. Seeing the familiar looking office of the Hokage that he was often led to, he gave a huge grin and smiled. That crystal ball will vanish!

Sarutobi felt a sudden gush of fear enter his fine, he could feel that the foreboding feeling he had back at the office coming back to him. Giving off a muffled curse he stood up and made a beeline towards his office.

Training area Forty Four:

Naruto tried to read the sign on the board that said

"Fo-Forest o-of Health" Said Naruo squinting his eyes and reading out loud

'**Forest of death fool'** Said the Kitsune in his head, he supposed he was going to teach Naruto their type of writing style...

The kitsune sighed, ot would be a long way to teach his container to how to fight, but at least the boy showed promise...

End!

Well, here's the rewrite of Heavy Metal, still has the same plot however, I removed the Buso Renkin issue and gave this a new title, Kuroi Kaze. The prologue is a bit of a jam when I made it but since I'm doing OJT's irregularly I hate it! I hope I finish this course sooner and actually take something I want, I only have eight months left and I will try to endure this as much as I can.

A reason why the doctors and nurses didn't do a refusal for Naruto's medical treatment? Realistically, all medical staff have sworn on the hippocratic oath to give care where care is due, and that we do not simply deny a patient's need of treatment, it is regardless of social status and upbringing. Now, I know some of the dramatic fics I've read here put a bad reputation on the medical aspect of the Naruto universe, but to me, the medical staff still serves as one of the most unbiased careers in any form of media, but hey that's just my two cents. So to me, saying that medical personel denying cure to a needy patient like Naruto's highly unprofessional and illogical. well, that's for me anyway.

Oh well, RnR!

No preview section for today!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two: Chosen

disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

* * *

The extent of one's reward depends on one's hard labour and desire to accomplish it. A concept that has made man persevere from the very beginning. Talents are not born, but they are honed, to say that one is talented is a common misconception that their skills of excellence in some field have come ever since birth. A misconception that has also been the downfall of many clans that have claimed their supreme dominance over the others.

Enter the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the fox having spawned from the depths of nothing, appeared in its full glory with already nine long tails sprouting from its back. But the creature did not believe on the common notion of talent, opting to say that **'To be strong, means more blood to spill'**

In a sick, twisted but almost understandable sort of way, the Kyuubi told itself that being able to strive for your goal with hard work, gives meaning to any person or creature. One's existence can be certain to clarify themselves, proving one's worth for their fruits of labour. It was a well known fact that the Kyuubi was an aggressive monster, it had a temper that of molten lava and had the power to back it up, so what's a testosterone induced monster bent on destruction to do? Why, beat the shit out of every one of course, and then gloating on top of a mountain full of corpses!

And so, the highest of the bijuu had made himself a work ethic and right now, he was instructing Naruto to do the same, only if he could ever get this child to do it right. Currently, Naruto was sneaking around his prey, which happened to be a deer. It was Naruto's second week, and it was already hell for him, first, the Kyuubi forced him to go to the Forest of Death with as little equipment, as oh say, nothing more than him, and a few spare clothes, no other equipment for survival, no kunai, no pouch, no weapons, nada.

So why, you may ask, would the Kyuubi would want to send the blonde haired child spiraling to his own doom? The Kyuubi believed that true strength is achieved through grueling experiences, through the experience of near death, and then experiencing life on the edge, where every day, your life was on the line, if not from starvation, then from the fact that almost every hour that there would be creatures, as big as a building would eat him whole. The Kyuubi wanted Naruto to start early, learn in the woods, and be raised by his own, in nature. Something that humans seemed to forget. After all, it was in nature that humans came from, why not spend it there even for a few minutes?

Because humans had the ability to manifest what they thought, they had a rather high amount of analytical intelligence, but with it came a price, their instincts gradually dwindled, especially the most essential of their instincts for survival, their sense of danger. Because of technology, the humans had their sense of predicting danger, dulled, even ninjas had almost had a hard time predicting it, it took years to obtain, years of experience when their minds were already mature. Such a loss was so great it would have saved a whole lot of their younglings during missions that involved fighting others, not just that, they could have sensed the danger of impending natural disasters, the people would go to higher ground when a storm comes, go far away when an earthquake hits, everything that gave them an almost precognitive ability, except the sharingan, that dirt cheap eye was only good in predicting movements in five to ten seconds ahead, perfectly useless once it involves massive and collateral damage to the enviroment. Try evading a tornado with a sharingan? Only a brain dead monkey would do that.

But then, it had been that stupid eye which controlled him and summoned him into this rathole, Madara was an eyesore to the Kyuubi once he saw him again, the nine tailed kitsune only gave an aggravated sigh and asked him the obvious question

'**Who or what would you like for me to crush, pulverize and or utterly destroy now?'**

Madara had specifically ordered him to kill everyone in Konoha, and look at where that has gotten him now.

Said Kitsune got locked up by the Shinigami into a prison that people spawn, a child.

Whoopdee frickin' doo

Since then the Kyuubi had sworn that if he ever saw Madara again, never try to have a deal with him... Ever.

Right now, the Kyuubi was teaching Naruto how to mask one's presence and eliminate his target. For a ninja, it is an essential skill, ninjas were assassins, not toothless brawlers, they were professional elites, not mindless fighting machines, to which, some ninjas, remorsefully forgret.

'**Watch your target carefully; look at the way it acts. Be alert and don't make a startling move.'**

Naruto did as he was told, he was crouching on a nearby bush, approximately ten meters away from the deer, he was close, but he needed to get closer. The deer was grazing and with each second that its head was down, Naruto began crawling closer, this time, the gap lessened only to seven meters... Perfect

'**Good, now, feel the very movement of your target, calm your heart down, and hold your breath, be motionless, be one with the shadows.' **

Naruto did as he was told, in a few seconds, his heart began to beat slower, a move that Kyuubi taught him on the very first day and took Naruto three days to master, Kyuubi may have been impressed with his progress, but he wasn't going to let that come out of his mouth. Like hell he will, he'll just keep saying that good enough, is not enough.

With his slower heartbeat, the vibrations in his body moved slowly, he could feel his breath suddenly stopping as he made no movements. The deer, was alarmed that it thought it was being watched and held its head up first until the presence of the creature mysteriously vanished. The deer let his guard down and proved to be its most fatal mistake.

'**Strike your opponent like lightning, and leave nothing in your wake not even a small trace!'**

Naruto did so, albeit clumsily, he tackled the deer into the ground and grabbed it by its horns, twisting the head. The deer that almost put up a fight, landed on the cold ground with its head bent. Naruto was panting; who knew that masking one's presence was so hard!?

The blonde, in Kyuubi's opinion, was rather a genius, though in a sense that he learns adeptly at what he experiences, with each passing day, Naruto's education from the Kyuubi was growing by leaps and bounds, his body, was slowly progressing and his mind was growing well rounded, his rationality was equalled by his own instincts. Only two weeks, and he had seen growth that of a great mind. Naruto was smart, he always asked questions to concepts he couldn't understand, and the fox would explain them clearly that Naruto understood it and applied what he learned, though applying it the first time was always a problem, Naruto slowly gets the hang of it by practicing it.

Naruto stood up as he held the deer by his shoulders and walked off towards his new home, a home that he had created two weeks ago that's free from bugs the size of your head, and plants that could literally eat and spit you out like a bad taste in the mouth.

But today, he could eat heartily as the fresh catch that he caught would serve him for a good whole day. Life was sometimes good.

Three Months later:

Today was December twenty seventh; Naruto had heard rumours from people from the village, that there was something big going to happen today, and out of a curious mind, went out of his home right now and jumped over the fence with ease.

During his training within two months, Naruto had learned of his own abilities. He was a fast healer, ever since obtaining one ferocious bite from one of the giant tigers, he found out that the puncture on his left arm as deep as a sword stab, began healing itself with the wound already closing up, no wounds and no scars were present. The next, he was immune to poisons, he was bitten by snakes on more than one occasion, but all of their venom couldn't penetrate him, cell destroying venom tended to be eaten by Naruto's White Blood Cells and Nerve blocking venom was as effective as drinking light Sake.

Another ability that he had courtesy of the Kyuubi, a slightly stronger muscle and bone structure, making his punches and kicks certainly hurt more. Not only that, he had enhanced senses, if running on a tightrope when he was in Konoha during his visits to not arouse suspicion of his disappearance from time to time has got anything to do with that.

When Naruto reached Konoha's western gate, there were people gathering there and a carriage, carrying Kumo Nin were standing as they headed towards the Hokage's office. Naruto tilted his head and wondered, just how was it that this thing is to be considered special? He would ask the Hokage to find out. Masking his presence, none of the people had felt the visit of the _'demon' _prior to the parade for the Kumo-Konoha alliance

Arriving at the tower, Naruto had startled the old man by suddenly tapping his shoulders. Sarutobi jumped up seeing the blonde and inwardly cursed as he felt no presence from behind him, as if, there was no really there. Scratching his head, he scolded Naruto for sneaking up on an important person and Naruto sheepishly scratched his head and gave of a grin and said sorry

"Very well, since it was just a harmless joke, so what did you want to talk to me about, Naruto-kun?" Asked Sarutobi and Naruto sighed

"It's about those Kumo Nin that are here."

"Is something the matter?" Asked Sarutobi and Naruto said plainly

"No... Just curious..." Said Naruto who then scratched his chin and then gave off a smirk again

"It's about an alliance with Kumo, Naruto." Said Sarutobi and Naruto replied

"What's an alliance?" Asked Naruto

"An alliance is in which someone gains friends from other countries, they tend to talk about what is going on around their village and what help we can give, to a certain extent." Said Sarutobi and Naruto nodded, understanding the explanation.

"Now Naruto, I don't want you interfering with work for now, so how about you go to Ichiraku for the rest of the day and you can even place it on the Hokage's tab? I'll check up on you later tonight." Said the third and Naruto nodded rather enthusiastically as he heard the word of his favourite restaurant.

With that, the boy vanished with a blur.

Later that night:

Tonight was getting cold, he should get back to his home in the forest of death and sleep, he was tired today and ever since he had finished his twelfth bowl of Ramen, his forehead, chest and shoulders began to slightly itch. He didn't know why, but there was obviously no bite marks, though there were occasional erythema appearing on the itchy sites, the red streaks were too angular to be natural, but the blonde ignored that symptom as he turned around and saw that one of the Kumo Ninja had began to sneak into the house. Naruto had scratched his head as the man entered; thinking what was really going on. Ah, well no time to ponder it for now. But as he was about passed the gate, the Kumo nin jumped up from the window, and crashed from below holding a limp child in his arms.

Now although Naruto was still young, his mind could already register that the man was kidnapping a child no less than ten years old. This made Naruto clench his feet as the man began to run. Naruto then, out of saving someone decided to follow, thinking the words that made him blend in the shadows, in the darkness!

The man that was running was becoming uneasy. Someone was following him, there was a sense that kicked in the moment but he gazed upon the walls but then couldn't find anything, no traces were present, however, like an itch in the back of his head that just won't stop bothering him,

He instinctively felt something was chasing him, but he just couldn't pinpoint who or what. It irked him to no end.

Naruto would continue to pursue his enemy, with the man throwing a kunai at a random direction which happened to be in Naruto's path. Naruto viewed the Kunai with curiosity as he tilted his held for a moment and grinned. Grabbing the Kunai, the blonde sped off silently almost catching up to his target.

The man began to sweat nervously, someone was playing with him, but who was it? This presence, it was very different, as if there was a small ripple of water that fell on the murky water of a well. It was a silent but resonant sound, small enough to not be noticed, yet big enough to cause a very disturbing vibration.

Naruto had made it farther than the man, as the man began to stumble. It wasn't as if the man was afraid, he was just anxious...

'_Watch your target carefully; look at the way it acts. Be alert and don't make a startling move.'_

Thought Naruto slowly raising the kunai at shoulder level his back rested on the wall perpendicular to the road the man was walking

'_Feel the very movement of your target, calm your heart down, and hold your breath, be motionless, be one with the shadows.'_

Naruto fell silent, his breathing slowed again, his heart calmed down, slowly vanishing and finally being as still as a statue, his eyes focused on the target, the man that was turning his head side to side, he eyed cautiously.

The man could literally _feel_ something going on, if he had trusted his sense of danger from the beginning he might've escaped earlier, but this time, he wasn't so sure right now, the one who was chasing him, his trace vanished, nothing could be felt from him, the man was starting to panic as he held the Hyuuga heiress in his arm.

'_Damn it who the hell is there?'_ Thought the man rather infuriatingly, as he began to dash towards the alley and into the intersection, where Naruto stood perfectly still, poised to strike at anytime...

'_Strike your opponent like lightning, and leave nothing in your wake not even a small trace!'_

The man was about to make it into the corner, until Naruto's hand with the kunai came out, perfectly stabbing the man by the leg. The man screamed in pain as he let go of the child, and made Naruto jump out and catch the fellow kid in his arms, and was sent skidding to the ground.

Blood seemed to pour out of the man as he was stabbed in the leg, he fell, feeling the pain as he glared at the man, no boy that had done it to him, he stared at the blonde haired boy and the blonde stared back in a steely gaze.

"What's wrong with you!? I thought you were friends with Konoha!" Said the blonde, the man laughed at Naruto's statement and said to him

"Friends? Alliances and friendships are two different things boy, you think that Kumo wanted a mutual bond with a village that we despise? Ha! Don't kid yourself."

The man then stood up, although almost wobbly, that child may not have been a ninja yet, but damn, his stealth and sneak attacks were good, the man cursed as he felt that the child severed a leg tendon. He cringed as he stood up, he wasn't about to fail a mission now.

"Give the Hyuuga back to me and I can assure you a painless death." Said the man

"No." Naruto simply replied as he held the girl in his arms and closed her into a hug. Forcing the child to awaken.

"Then you leave me no choice. Die brat!" Said the man as he went through a series of handseals that ended with Tori

"Raiton: Tsuirai no Jutsu! (Ligtning Release: Tracking Lightning)" Said the man raising his hand up and lightning surged on the ground towards Naruto. The blonde closed his eyes and held the Hyuuga close into a tight hug, causing the girl to utter an "eep!"

A moment, it only took a moment for Naruto to realize that a sudden gust of wind deflected the surging electricity

'_Wha?' _Naruto thought as he looked at the man who was in surprise himself

"Shit, a damn prodigy! I never thought I'd see the day that I'll get to meet one myself! You're going with me along with the Hyuuga girl brat!" The man then used another set of seals and ended it in tori once again

"How about this for a change! Raiton: Kokuraigeki! (Black Lightning strike)" The man raised his left arm and then swung it down towards the blonde, Naruto felt it again, the swirling of winds that surrounded him and deflected the ebony lightning blast. This frustrated the poor man and dashed at him, using his chakra he manipulated it and converted it to lightning as he grabbed two Kunai, despite his injured leg, he could still run, and made an effort as he dashed towards the blonde.

Naruto began to tremble, he couldn't move, a jounin running at him in full speed, while still carrying a child his age? He wouldn't be able to move let alone dodge!

He then felt it, the sudden surge of power in his veins, was it the Kyuubi? No, this felt more calm, soothing to say the least, normally, he could feel the spike of Kyuubi's chakra, it was erratic to say the least, the chakra he felt was too wild, he felt it when he was cornered in the forest of death by a few savage animals, mainly tigers...

That chakra felt wild, it was unfathomable, uncontrollable and to a certain extent, downright evil. This one? It felt soothing, comfortable and simply benevolent. Naruto could swear that the winds were singing as he stood up, still holding the Hyuuga girl in his arms, The winds howled even wilder, as it circulated Naruto, by this time, Hyuuga Hiashi had arrived at the scene, the boy that everyone hated was displaying a majestic sight, his area was filled with dancing and circling up drafts, all the while he could hear a sort of song coming from the winds themselves

'_Took you a while, kid.' _Said the voice in Naruto's head.

Naruto was startled, as he saw that he was standing yet again, in his own _mindscape_, only this time, instead of a sewer, he was standing at a grassy plane, a temple in the middle and multiple windmills

'_Communication and link to me has been established, welcome, Naruto.' _Said the man and Naruto had a dumbfound look on his face as he walked around, he suddenly saw that he was inside the temple, the wooden floors and the walls were the giveaway, looking in front of him, he could see a man, wearing nothing but green in colour, was sitting in front of him with a staff that monks use for travel, snuggled on his shoulders, the man was drinking something, and it seemed an alcoholic one too, if the blush didn't indicate any of it, as well as the hiccups, he then saw a ball glowing in an eerie red. The man noticed how Naruto stared at the ball and said

'_So you noticed where Kyuubi is sealed right?' _Asked the man and Naruto looked at him questioningly

'_Kyuubi is in there?' _Asked the blonde

'_Fraid so kid. Now that you're here, you might be asking, 'Who is this awesome person that is standing here before me?' right?' _Asked the man and Naruto turned his head in another fit of curiosity

'_Hehe, thought so, my name is Fuujin! I am the wind god! Present at the time of creation and at the birth of Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi and Susanoo!'_ Said the man, performing a kabuki dance and Sakura petals fell from nowhere

'_I'm here Naruto, because I want you to act in my steed, Amaterasu chose you to be my steed because she deemed it that you had an awful life and that as one who is related to Shinigami, she felt partially responsible, so right now, you are in a state that I would call, the Fuutei, or Wind Emperor, it is activated when the Shi Fuuin no Touzainanboku (Four seals of the Four directions) are released, in this state, it is not chakra that is used to create winds, but the wind itself, you chakra will only act as somewhat a controller or remote.' _Said Fuujin as he gave thumbs up and a smile that says, 'isn't it cool?'

'_What made you appear here?' _Asked the blonde and the wind god replied

'_Whenever there is danger, I'll be there!'_ Said Fuujin as he raised his hand and grinned again

With a sudden tug, Naruto felt like he was being pulled to the outside world, once he was out of his trance the ninja that was standing there before him was on the ground, a person was in front of him, long black hair flowing down and white eyes that seem to penetrate the very soul. Naruto was looking at the man in shock as he was holding the girl in his arms, if he didn't know better, this person that stood between him and the Kumo nin was the one who intervened and saved both of them.

Hiashi was never one to judge, during the time when the council were deciding the future of young Naruto, they were clearly separated by their doubts and beliefs. On one hand, there was the group that wanted the boy dead, mostly from the civilians' side, on the other? The shinobi clans were there, opting to support the boy since they trusted the seal of the fourth, they believed Naruto deserved better, a contradiction of their work, shinobis were born to kill, for them, compassion in duty is fatal, but not in their homes, shinobis learned to value life among others, though their work forces them to kill, shinobi were more compassionate than any other professionals, forcing them to realize just how fragile and how important life can be, making them, support and to some extent, sympathize with Naruto. However, there was a third party involved that Hiashi and most of the members clearly did not like, Danzou and his... Proposition

Danzou proposed that Naruto be turned into a living weapon for Konoha and should he disobey, his sentence would be immediate death, Hiashi, despite his calm stoic nature literally yelled at Danzou and deliberately said that if he were turned into a weapon what chances of him turning his back on the village? As high as the Hokage's mountain, that is for sure!

Danzou argued with him that the price was worth it for the protection of the village, Tsume countered Danzou by saying

"_So, you'd rather have Naruto turn into a mindless weapon, able to kill without remorse and will only recognize one person for him to obey until he dies, but who will it be? You? I doubt that an old bag of bones can live for another seventy years commanding his little pet, and then what? What happens when you kick the bucket? Naruto will kill everyone! By doing that, you have already sealed the fate of the village itself!"_

Danzou remained quiet after that, knowing that arguing with the council was useless.

Hiashi then kneeled down in front of Naruto with his head bowing

"As leader of the Hyuuga Clan, I am forever indebted to you, Uzumaki Naruto, thank you for saving my daughter."

Naruto then tilted his head for a moment and then smiled, as he handed over the girl in his arms, who was now conscious, and gave the boy a solemn bow

"T-Thank you, N-Naruto-kun..." She said and Naruto scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile

He gave off a none too formal reply,

"Nah, it was nothing." Said Naruto as he walked off. He then waved his hand for a goodbye to Hiashi and Hinata

"See ya!"

Hinata viewed at the boy before her for the first time, she had never felt this way before, it was so inspiring, she had never seen a boy so courageous, so chivalrous, and so... Just.

Hiashi viewed his daughter, in curiosity as the girl held her hands together to her chest, with a smile on her face and a blush to complement her cheeks, there's no mistake about it, her daughter was having a crush on Uzumaki Naruto

Hiashi shook his head and tapped the back of her child gesturing for both of them to get a good night's rest.

It would take two more years for Naruto and Hinata to meet again.

Two years later:

Two years, two years passed since Naruto first started training in the Forest of Death, by now, Naruto was a master of Stealth and Ambush tactics, he became cunning, able to come up with traps that were layered enough to even capture and ensnare ANBU, Kyuubi didn't just create a fighter, he created a _Thinking_ fighter. His Physical Strength improved immensely, as well as his acute senses.

But since he had discovered his affinity to the wind, Naruto couldn't help but feel and experiment to his newfound energy called chakra. Once in a while he would go out of the woods and specifically ask some of the ninjas on what is chakra and how it can be controlled. Some, were met with fine answers, others, were met with them ignoring him, and a certain silver haired ANBU member taught him how to climb trees with just his feet. Naruto seemed impressed and thought about it. He learned how to create and mould chakra from Kakashi and since then, practiced and practiced it on the biggest tree in the forest of death.

Thanks to that, Naruto now has a decent chakra control and add to the fact that he became a sure shot hellraiser when he completed it, he had defiled one's home by teepeeing his house, put a nice bag of tasteless laxatives at a local cafe, causing it to close down and the owner weeping miserably, and the most ballsy that he has done yet, put Hallucinogens on Tuna Toro day for the Hunter Nin

"Boy, I didn't know they really loved their Tuna Toro that much..." Said Naruto some of the hunter nins were still pissed at the blonde's joke, that past week, some of them were even admitted to the psych ward and had to be restrained during hysteric fits of laughter due to drug overdose.

Grinning as he walked past some of the people, he saw a woman, who stood in front of him wearing what could be described by the older generation as vulgar and uncouth for such a lady, Naruto had raised an eyebrow thinking how a skirt could be that short?

A devilish smirk had appeared on his face, he looked around, trying to find the perfect su-- err victim,

'_Bingo!'_

he found him, the man was hiding behind a post with a pair of dark sunglasses on, his forehead protector was tied in a bandana fashion, to Naruto, he would be the perfect bait.

A small gust of wind blew below blowing papers or anything light upward, the girl who was wearing the skirt, viewed behind her only finding that there was no person there and that there was a blonde child 

who was standing next to hEr as he was about to leave. She had to look back eventually finding a stunned Ebisu as he stared at her,

'_P-pink...' _Was all Ebisu could think off with a blush and blood on his nose as he was sent flying away through the wall while he was being pounded

Naruto, though discreetly, laughed at the man's position as he was continued to be mangled by a very pissed off woman.

Walking off to the Uchiha district, he had noticed that the people there were as lively as they are, Naruto walked in, and was met with curious glances from the people inside, in stark contrast to that of the village, some had met him with an apathetic gaze, others with dismissive looks, while others in a curious and almost seem, welcoming stare.

The blonde was adamant about it, until he had met a two people

"Oh look, Sasuke, it seems a person has wondered into our side of town." Mentioned the older one, the smaller one, stared at him for a few minutes and greeted him

"Hi! I'm Uchiha Sasuke, Pleasure to meet you." Said the boy as he reached out his hand, the blonde in his ever curious mind, tilted his head in wonder and did the same gesture, reaching out for the opposite hand, Sasuke shook it vigorously and said to him

"This is my cool big brother, he's Itachi-niisan, currently he's an ANBU member and is a captain." Said Sasuke and Naruto nodded as he viewed the older boy that was smiling at him

"I'm... Uzumaki Naruto" Said the blonde, his head brimming with wonder and questions

"Naruto-kun, I've heard of what happened back then at the Hunter Nin corp, you sure had a lot of guts pulling that kind of stunt." Said Itachi a chuckle escaping his lips

Naruto had a sheepish laugh and scratched at the back of his head,

'_No one ever praises my pranks before...'_

"That was you, Naruto? Wow, it would take a lot of guts for you to do that, I heard that some of the people there loved their Tuna too much, especially old man Kinta." Said Sasuke as he laughed and Naruto laughing with him

"The Hunter nins are still grouchy about the subject, some of us ANBU are already guarding the cafeteria once its Tonkatsu day." Said Itachi and Naruto had a sweatdrop form on the back of his head.

"Come, Sasuke, we're going to train, it has been a pleasure meeting you, Naruto-kun." Said Itachi, Naruto just bowed as a sign of confirmation and left on his own accord

Naruto made a dash towards the Hokage's office, he wanted to learn and study more to be a ninja, he was hoping Sarutobi would fulfil his request

* * *

Sarutobi's office:

The blonde knocked on the older man's door, and the person inside gestured for him to come in, Naruto feeling quite bored of his life already without training, had wanted someone to teach him how to control and manipulate chakra remembering one of the lessons, that the Kyuubi taught him about it when he was climbing trees with his feet,

'_**Chakra is the most malleable energy there is, you can change its shape, or change its basal elemental structure, converting to different types of elements, understand form manipulation, and you could open up countless ways to use it, to heal, to attack, even cause a temporary heater, chakra is so malleable, it's practically the most useful type of energy there is. Understand Elemental manipulation, it could bring just about anything, from breathing fire to using the weather as your weapon, Elemental Manipulation need only a convergence in chakra and the rest will follow.'**_

"Ah, Naruto, what brings you in for today?" Asked the aging man

"Jiji, I want someone to train me..." Said Naruto, the old man just raised his eyebrow, for all he knew Naruto was still young, there was no denying that his physical and mental strength was up to par with the training that most ninja undergo, but what makes the old man raise his eyebrow was how Naruto could avoid being seen when he wanted to, not many ninja were able to find him when he did one of his pranks, even Sarutobi couldn't feel his presence when he appeared here two years ago, it's as if, stealth was so natural to him that it was almost second nature to him, when he heard Hiashi's report on the assault of the Kumo nin, Sarutobi began to wonder, just who was the person teaching Naruto? Damn, if Naruto could teach that type of skill to every ANBU member, just think how powerful his forces could get!

But Sarutobi would clearly decline the request, putting him with a teacher would make the council think that he's favouring Naruto though he was deemed dangerous, Sarutobi would have none of that, the boy was completely stable in his mind, there was no hint of the blonde having a fit of insanity, it's just absurd!

"I'm sorry Naruto, but there isn't any available Jounin that would train you right now and besides, aren't you rushing things? You are a child, and what you need now is more friends rather than jutsus." Said Sarutobi

"That's not fair! How come some of the kids can train already to become ninja at my age, while I get to be held back! Humph! He even said that I should train early because I'll need it in the future." Said the disheartened blonde as he turned his back on the Hokage and pouted

Sarutobi gave a sigh, a six year old will always be a six year old, though, just who was the chrome dome that wanted Naruto to start training early?

As Sarutobi thought of that, one divine being in Amatsu had sneezed and a village was wiped off the map.

"Not telling!" Said the blonde, obviously still pouting

Okay, that didn't work? Let's try this

"How about some ramen? I'm sure we could talk about this..." Said Sarutobi and Naruto, feeling a bit tempted by the sound of the food of the gods but... No

"I can't hear you! LALALALALA!" Said the blonde immaturely covering his ears, okay bribing him to ramen didn't work, that means he must really want a teacher, he was going to get something from the council from this, Sarutobi sighed, as he finally felt defeated from the hands of a six year old Naruto

"Fine! You'll get a teacher, just who was it that trained you these last two years?" Asked Sarutobi

Naruto grinned, now that's more like it, he turned his head back to the Hokage and said with a confident voice, "Fuujin!"

Sarutobi had his eyes widened the last time he had hear of that name was when Naruto was born, good thing the boy told him, otherwise, he would have prevented a divine intervention!

Sarutobi, for the first time, felt helpless, a recommendation from a god like that? How can he deny it? He would certainly not let it pass, council be damned.

Once Sarutobi nodded, the blonde excited the room, feeling that he would learn better from someone in the real world rather than in his head, Naruto may have been good at grasping concepts and applying them, but he still would need the basics, scanning through the list of Jounin that were available but not highly profiled or highly obscure, he had found the perfect teacher.

Sarutobi grinned, he motioned his secretary to get a messenger and get this man now.

As Sarutobi thought of this, relief soon settled in his mind if only for a moment, the Uchiha are acting up, he had already heard of it from Itachi, the planned coup d'état, tonight, Itachi would be murdering his best friend and one of the brains behind the attempt, Uchiha Shisui

Sarutobi wanted to prevent this, he didn't want the Uchiha to be extinct, probably because he wanted peace between the two clans of the Senju and Uchiha, but now, the order of the council plus the coup d'état would forever seal their fates, he just wished that Itachi, the council and the Uchiha would reconsider...

The man that he ordered to come to the tower had slowly opened the door with a courteous greeting

"You summoned me, Hokage-sama?" Asked the man and Sarutobi nodded

"Ah, just the person I wanted to see... Hayate."

The next day:

Naruto stood up and went out of the forest of death, once outside, he had heard news of an Uchiha being killed last night, it was an ominous sign, but who could've done such a thing? He had overheard that the police force had already someone in their wanted list. Naruto swallowed his saliva as he had heard that familiar name, he knew it was Sasuke's brother, but for the life of him, he couldn't understand why would Itachi do that? But then again, he hadn't really got to know the person really well, maybe there was a motive behind it?

Naruto had to laugh, idiot, every murder has a motive, be it personal or just plain psycho, a motive is still a motive.

As he went passed the Uchiha district, he could see Itachi making a mad dash outside the village walls, being curious, the blonde followed him outside until he had reached the clearing that Itachi had disappeared to

He then heard it, voices, coming from the grove, Naruto sat intently, blending with the shadows, his sense of danger was rising, his heart was beginning to go at a fast rate and he began to breathe heavily, but he tried to calm down and fell silent, as motionless as a statue

"You promise that you will not harm Konoha and have me spare one or two Uchiha members in the process?" Asked the voice that Naruto recognized as Itachi

"Yes and in turn, I want the members of the Uchiha clan, dead. They wanted a coup d'état too late. Your father is getting to be a nuisance, dispose of them, and I promise I won't harm either one or two Uchiha and I'll leave the leaf village alone." Said the other voice, it wasn't recognizable, but the Kyuubi did, although he had kept silent about it.

Naruto was startled by the news, Itachi and this person? Was going to kill the entire Uchiha clan? He had better tell this to the Hokage immediately but stopped suddenly when he had heard one of the men felt that he was staring at the blonde's position

'_Crap, the excess movement almost blew my cover!' _Thought the blonde as he kept silent and tried to keep his heartbeat down, eventually calming down and his breathing slowed eventually to a stop as he felt one with the shadows.

The man with the mask as he saw, turned away to another direction while Itachi headed back

As he walked past the last tree, Itachi stood to a complete stop with a smile on his face, he said,

"I know you are there Naruto, don't hide anymore." Said Itachi and Naruto stood up

"Tell me Itachi-san, why would you kill the Uchiha clan?" Asked the blonde the ebony haired teen replied without looking at the child

"Because, there is no turning back." Said the Uchiha

"But why? Itachi-san, aren't Sasuke and the others your family? Why would you do this?" Asked Naruto obviously clenching his fist

"Like I said, there is no turning back." Said the Uchiha

"We can't go back the way we were, the council had gotten word of the coup there is nothing we can do but carry out the orders, Madara is going to help me. Naruto, please keep quiet about this." Said Itachi and Naruto yelled at him

"There has to be some other way! There has to be! I'll find it Itachi-san and I'll stop that massacre even if it kills me!" Said the blonde as he dashed off with determination in his eyes.

Itachi looked at the child with somewhat hopeful eyes however, it was too late, and like Itachi had said before, the damage has already been done. Itachi closed his eyes for a moment and let a single tear fall from his face. How he wished it was all that easy like what Naruto just said. Two days from now, he will do it, he'll kill all the Uchiha alongside Madara.

End!

* * *

That's it for now! Been pretty tough writing this one, I still have alot of catching up to do though

Chapter Preview:

The world is such a cruel place, in the night of the full moon, the crow sits above the nest, viewing his victims and the young hawk weeps to his fallen clan, the little fox that sought change, however, was still finding any more survivors amidst the sea of dead bodies, screaming the at the top of his lungs if there were people still alive that day. The crow leaves, taking flight knowing that his little brother was now in the safe hands.

Chapter Three: Amidst the Bloody Moon

Sorry, not a yaoi/shounen-ai writer people, if this is a foreshadowing to some of you, then I'm quickly shooting it down, to not get any false hope up.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Amidst the bloody moon

* * *

Naruto began running as fast as his legs could take him, he had to go to the Hokage, to let him know what he had heard, and surely he can stop the madness of Itachi! He ran, turning on his left, he had almost stumbled on a girl with light blonde hair, and apologizing along the way. He made a beeline towards the Tower, running up the stairs as he started to pant, he pounded on the doors of the familiar office he once knew.

Sarutobi opened the door, to his surprise, he had seen the spiky blonde haired boy panting and looked as if, and a bully was mocking his ramen. The child looked up to the man and said to him

"Itachi... plan... Killing... Clan... Report... Jiji..." Said the boy between pants as he bent down and held his knees from the run he had

Sarutobi was wide eyed, where did the blonde get this information? It was supposed to be only for him, Homura, Kohaku and Danzou to know, no one else, how did Naruto get this information?

"I'm sorry Naruto; I couldn't quite get you just said."

"I said, Itachi is planning to kill his own clan, I needed for you to know this. He says there was no other choice!" Said the blonde

'_So it was Itachi' _thought the wise Hokage, but the question was, why? What was Itachi planning? Itachi had already pleaded to him that he should protect Sasuke, and Sarutobi agreed albeit disheartened by what was happening now, but why would he tell Naruto? As a witness? In case Sasuke knew the truth? Sarutobi mused over the possibilities but gave in to one final answer that Naruto would turn into a failsafe plan if Sasuke wanted to know the truth, and Naruto would be the one urging Sasuke not to try anything stupid within the walls of Konoha.

"Listen Naruto, what will leave my lips, must not leave these walls, is that clear?" Said the old man, as he went down and gripped the child's shoulders

Naruto only looked seriously at the old man and then nodded.

A few hours later:

Sarutobi sighed; he should've expected the reaction from the blonde that quickly

* * *

Flashback:

"_Why? It doesn't have to be this way, Jiji! You know there should be another way!" Said Naruto, sadly, Sarutobi looked away from his gaze, the blonde's fists were shaking_

"_Sadly, there is no other way, I have let things spiralled out of control, even know, there is still mistrust between the Uchiha and the Senju most notably from Danzou and Fugaku, I have done everything I can, but it seemed to be of no avail, I should've eliminated Danzou when I had the chance." Said the old man­_

"_But you're the Hokage! You can do anything! You can make them stop fighting!" Said Naruto yelling at the top of his lungs_

_Sarutobi only looked at the child and gave a sigh; such idealistic and pure mind should never be exposed this early to the horrors of the world_

"_Naruto, there are things that even the Hokage cannot do, even I can't stop this anymore." Said the wise old man giving a firm gaze o the blonde who became angrier and angrier by the moment, Naruto lowered his head his eyes did not become visible from the old man_

"_Then I'll be one..." muttered the blonde_

"_What is it, Naruto?" Asked the old man_

"_I'll be one!" Said the blonde_

"_I'll be the Hokage that will prevent another tragedy, I'll be their guide, their protector, and I promise this to myself, the day I become Hokage, is the day that people will forget their past between the Uchiha and the Senju." Said the blonde letting go of the Hokage's grip and then dashing outside of his office not looking back at the old man_

Flashback ends

* * *

Sarutobi lit his pipe and inhaled the smoke, things have taken a turn for the worse in his mind, and the old man stood absentmindedly from his chair and gazed at his window looking at the stone faces of three previous Hokages

"If you were in my position, what would you have done? Minato?"

Naruto:

Naruto started to run, not looking back at the office, he felt like running, just to anywhere really, Naruto felt useless against the one that was going to transpire, he hated feeling useless, it was one thing that he felt when he was beaten up when he was a child thus, his sworn oath to become strong and be Hokage, to be of use in the world, to acknowledge his existence! As he went down the stairs, he had bumped into a ninja that wore a vitiate like a bandana, had terrible bags under his eyes, pale skin colour, a standard uniform and a katana strapped on his back.

"Sorry mister." Said Naruto and the man nodded and when Naruto started to run again, the ninja had questioned him

"Are you Uzumaki Naruto?" Asked the sickly looking man, the down trodden boy gave a half hearted reply

"Yes..."

­

"Good thing I found you, Hokage-sama was about to introduce me to you, but he was said to be busy at the moment. Let's go to the training area and then we could begin." Said Hayate and Naruto tilted his head in question, and then realized when a grin was plastered on his face at the moment

'_I have a sensei now!' _Thought the enthusiastic child all thoughts about his helplessness vanished as the blonde seemed to have bounced back to his usual cheery side

"Good, now we go to training area fifteen and start from there." Said Hayate and both Master and student walked towards the training grounds

Training area fifteen:

Once Hayate and Naruto arrived at training ground fifteen, Hayate asked Naruto to sit down and start with introductions, during which Naruto eagerly introduced himself

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto; my likes are training, Ramen, and meals that are served in a platter not on a stick." Naruto remembered his times at the forest of death, he could only get a nice meal once in a while when he was training, and Hayate scratched his head in wonder in this one

"My dislikes are overkill training regimens, drunkards and prejudiced people, Dreams for the future? Become Hokage." Said the blonde and then Hayate continued

"My name is Gekko Hayate, I have many likes and my only dislike is this cold, my dreams for the future? Well... Let's not talk about that for now." Said Hayate, sitting down on the ground in a lotus position and said to the blonde

"Today, we'll be practicing meditation. Because meditation and concentration are needed for what I'm about to teach you." Said Hayate and Naruto nodded but then, the blonde had asked the man what was he about to learn?

"Naruto, do you know the three principles that a ninja should master?" Asked the sickly man and Naruto, shook his head, Hayate couldn't blame him, the child was still not enrolled in the academy, Sarutobi was putting it on hold till he enrolls in the second semester. Hayate had started to wonder because of that.

"The three principle areas that ninja should know are, Taijutsu, Ninjutsu and Genjutsu. Taijutsu is basically hand to hand combat. Ninjutsu, involves using chakra to mould and create jutsus that can range from special effect jutsus to long range offensive ones. Genjutsu, is the art of illusions, it fools just about all of the senses, it is also a complex art, one not many people venture forth." Said Hayate being reminded of one kunoichi that took genjutsu as a specialty, and then coughing at the bitter memory of the woman turning him down. Fortunately, he had found someone better, and the woman she was going out now was in the ANBU.

Hayate was brought out of his musings when the child asked him

"I don't see what that has got to do with meditation, sensei. What's it got to do with my training?"­

Hayate smiled a little and replied to the inquisitive blonde

"Why, we're adding an additional principle of course, it's Kenjutsu!" Said the man and Naruto had to raise his head in excitement, learning the way of the sword this early? This is better than he expected!

With his training, he'll try to learn all that he can! He'll stop Itachi!

* * *

Two days later:

Today was the day, the day that Uchiha Itachi was to murder the clan. The day that made Naruto nervous, so far, from what he learned from Hayate, was meditation and how to properly swing a sword, it was not easy learning the style that Hayate wanted to teach to him, Sougetsu no Terasu (Illuminating Moon Phase)

Apparently, it was a sword style that he was taught from seven years ago. Hayate knew the person who taught him very well. It was a sword style that originated in Uzu no Kuni and that it was from that one person who travelled here from the debunked Uzu no Kuni. Hayate didn't state it who, for he knew that the blonde would question how was he affiliated to the one person called, Uzumaki Kushina.

That would be delving into murky waters that Hayate knew that ran deep. It was treason to speak about Naruto's heritage. It was just too risky for the blonde to know this early, even if they were in the village, he couldn't exactly feel safe what with all the enemies Konoha has right now.

Naruto remembered the lesson Hayate had said when handling the sword,

"_Kenjutsu is a perfection of art, the art of the sword is much more different than just swinging it. It requires quick thinking, immense hand eye coordination like handseals only much easier and tranquility to attain perfect stances and strikes whilst holding the blade__."_

"_There are certain principles applied in wielding a weapon, the most notable of all is that in the principle of using a Japanese Katana, Wakizashi or Zanbatou, the use of the sword must always be one strike, one kill."_

The blonde remembered that lesson as he meditated in his home in the forest of death. Seemingly to prepare himself to what will happen later on. The rumors were already spreading, Itachi acting strange, becoming quieter than he already was, ignoring Sasuke's training, always vanishing through the night and a whole lot more events. Conspiring on to this day, he was also preparing, Itachi that is... Although all Naruto had right now was a wooden sword, to him, this would suffice for the moment, he only meant to stop Itachi at all costs. For that, he was willing to do so.

Later that night:

Naruto had began, donning the wooden sword on his back he ran towards the Uchiha district, determined to stop Itachi at all cost. Right now, the academy had just ended, perfect time for Sasuke to come home. Naruto had to stop the child from entering the complex on his own or else Itachi might kill him too.

Turning to a corner he had seen the Uchiha boy just about to head home. The blonde then grabbed the raven haired child by the collar and then dashed away.

Sasuke was confused why did the blonde drag him away like that? Was something going on?

"Hey! Quit that! What are you doing?" Asked Sasuke

"No time to explain, we're going to the Uchiha complex right now."

"What!? What's happening at home right now!?"

"Just come with me, or else you could die." Said Naruto and Sasuke gulped. Making their way to the Uchiha Complex, what Naruto saw, was something that he would see only in books. In the dead of the night, countless bodies of Uchiha clan members were lain down on the ground, blood was splattered everywhere, Naruto could feel the lunch that he had was slowly welling up to his mouth, but he had to contain it. Sasuke on the other hand, was completely shocked and immediately made a dash for his home, trying to find his own mother and father

"Sasuke! Wait!" Screamed the blonde as he ran after the blonde but stopped as he heard a few screams coming out of the district to his left, ignoring Sasuke for a moment, Naruto went to the place where the sounds of metal against metal was heard and a loud scream echoed through the night.

After reaching to a corner, Naruto remained silent and concealed his presence as he saw a masked man, that had wild long black hair a visible hole was present over his right eye, adorned with black streaks of flame that seem to converge in the hole.

Naruto remained quiet but couldn't feel his feet because of fear, this man... This wasn't Itachi, it was someone more ruthless.

As he viewed the man, who was dissecting anyone andanything that catches his eye, Naruto could feel the fear seeping and continuously growing on the back of his mind.

Naruto was panting, his heart was racing, that man who was currently doing mass killings of the people in the complex, he showed no remorse, he could feel his feet opting him to make a run for it, get Sasuke and get away from this madman as soon as possible.

However, he couldn't do so, tied with his fear, he suddenly saw the man who turned his head and viewed in his direction

'_Shit!' _Thought the blonde as the man, appeared suddenly in front of him with the blonde jumping back to increase their distance

Madara raised an eyebrow, who was this child and what was he doing here? An unusual feeling of curiosity piqued the aged madman viewing the tiny child's features and was suddenly brought from his musings when he saw the wild spiky blonde hair and the cool blue eyes

Madara's killer intent raised, the child could feel it, with the killer intent, Naruto was kneeling on the ground. This child... It reminded Madara of the man that came and swiped Kyuubi from his palm, the man responsible for stealing the power he once had, The Yondaime Hokage­

"You..." Madara uttered and Naruto looked at the masked man

"You!" Said the man as he swung his katana down at Naruto, the blonde insticntively rolled to his left, dodging the blade the sliced through the wooden post like paper

"Yondaime... How dare you... How dare you ruin my plans!" Said the man as he dashed at the blonde. Naruto quickly got up and was about to run when he was met in front by the crazed masked man

The man raised Naruto by the collar and raised the blonde to eye level of the man.

Madara smirked as a bit of sanity returned to him, his rage slowly disappearing as he viewed the boy who had his eyes closed, a moment of clarity was regained when he felt the all too familiar malicious taint of chakra that circulated within the boy.

"No wonder you look like him, now I understand... Fufufu... The yondaime never took the creature with him to the stomach of the Shinigami, he never could, instead, he seals it into his own son! How thoughtful for a father to leave such a wonderful gift! Such Irony of it all!" Said Madara as he dropped the blonde on the floor and kicked the child hard in the gut making Naruto doubling over in pain

"That pain, it was nothing compared to the times when I was ostracized by both Konoha and the Uchiha clan alike!" Said Madara as he swung his sword earning a deep cut on Naruto's shoulders as the boy screamed in agony

"Kyuubi will be mine again, and he shall serve me to do my unfinished business." Said Madara, raising Naruto by the hair as he stared at the boy straight in the eye, the Mangekyou Sharingan coming to life

'**Madara you fool, I shall no longer obey and be controlled by your whim, I have found a better and more interesting human than you.' **Said the Kyuubi as a little of his red chakra flickered throughout his cage; the demonic energy was then felt by Madara as he dropped the blonde face first on the cold hard ground.

Naruto slowly stood up as he could feel the effects of the Kyuubi's chakra circulating in his veins, he felt stronger, faster and his wounds were starting to not sting anymore, whatever it is, it was helping him right now.

A pair of white lines had began to form on Naruto's eyes, each iris contained two streams of white light in the iris as it spun around, following each other's tail. As he stood there, no emotion was shown, Naruto grabbed the handle of his wooden sword and unsheathed it on his back, holding it with his right hand and placing the blade face down on his lower right

"Oh? Little child wants to play with swords does he?" Said Madara amusedly as he drew his sword at the blonde with a smile hidden beneath his mask, he told the child

"Then let's play!"

With that, Naruto reacted immediately, he ran fast enough that he was almost a blur, immediately appearing at the side of Madara with his wooden sword about to hit him on his left side. Madara reacted quickly, a bit surprised of the blonde's speed, he jumped up, but was followed up by the blonde with an overhead swing. Madara twisted his body to his rightand gave a kick at Naruto's jaw. The blonde reacted by mimicking Madara and spun his sword with the edge and tip of the sword at the opposite end. He swung the wooden blade and placed it at Madara's back. Madara was about to give a punch to the boy when the boy retracted his hand. Immediately sensing that the wooden sword was about to hit his back, he concentrated his chakra at his lower torso and let the blade phase through his body. A look of surprise was evident on Naruto's face as both fighters landed ad fell on the ground on their feet.

"The way you hold and swing the sword... That stance... I have never thought that I would encounter Uzu no Akaishin's (The Red Death of Whirlpool) sword style ever again... (Illuminating Moon Phase)" Said Madara as Naruto then blurred out of Madara's vision and reappeared at his back, with his sword already halfway swung horizontally at his back. Madara jumped and summersaulted in midair, as he hurled three kunai that the blonde deflectedwith his wooden sword but the last one managed to cut his sword in half

"You may have a good Kenjutsu art child, but a novice like you can never learn the katas that the Akaishin was famous for. And you can never match up to someone who has the experience of a ninja for the last seventy years. Suiton: Teppou Dama (Water Release: Gun Bullet)..."

Madara then condensed chakra out of his hand and water seemed to form. He threw the water based ninjutsu at Naruto that grew in size as Naruto was slammed by the water violently pushing him back by the force.

Naruto hit his back on the wall, all the while seeing the man cast his jutsu on the house at his back. Black flames had errupted out of nowhere, and engulfed the people inside. That was what Naruto saw last before darkness consumed him...

Thinking that the child was permanently incapacitated, since the technique he used had enough pressure to shatter every bone in the body, Madara patiently waited for his new student, Uchiha Itachi

Itachi arrived, with a sliver of tears on his right eye, Madara assured him, that what he did was for the best. Itachi had frowned at that statement a little but he dared not show it against this man, Madara began to leave. Itachi, before he could do the same, used a middle index cross and left behind a Kage Bunshin...

* * *

Three hours later:

Naruto woke up with his bones and body still intact, silently thanking the fox and his regenerative and strengthening capabilities, thankfully his worst injury right now was a stubbed toe when he tripped on a rock on his way towards where Sasuke had gone.

As he walked towards his destination, he glanced around and yelled at the top of his voice, trying to find any more survivors, only to find his echoing voice his only answer. He swore at the top of his lungs... "DAMN IT ALL!"

A failed attempt

He failed to save everybody, he couldn't save everybody, he was useless, insignificant...

**WEAK**

Naruto then clenched his fists, why couldn't he do it? Is he truly weak? It was mortifying to him, helpless and humiliating. That man, he said that he (Naruto) was the son of the Yondaime Hokage... If that were the case, then shouldn't he have been treated with a different manner? With that thought, he was shaking his fists with anger, hatred, and ultimately, frustration, why was he always given the worst deal of the bargain every time?

"Shit..." Uttered the blonde walking into where Sasuke went before he took off and faced that man with the black fire mask. Entering the house where Sasuke went

"Is someone there?" Asked Naruto earning a groan as a reply.

He entered the house, it was eerily quiet, the only sound he heard was the groaning and crying of a single person inside the compound. Entering the dojo, where he could hear the groaning of someone, he entered the training hall to find two people piled on each other and a child on the floor whimpering and crying, the one that groaned...

"Sasuke... It was you that survived all along huh?" Asked Naruto, as he kneeled in front of Sasuke and carried him on his shoulders to place him by the side of the wall

He looked over at the bodies of the two people in the middle of the dojo, the male was slashed and stabbed at the chest, blood that seemed to clot on his mouth suggested that his heart was pierced last, bruises and abrasions were present on him, the man was brutally murdered.

The next, was a woman, there were no signs of her being harmed in any physical way, no bruises, no shuriken or kunai lobbed on any part of her body, no bleeding, nothing...

So as to surprise, Naruto had found Mikoto breathing. Pushing the other corpse's body aside, he shook the older woman on her shoulders only to find her not responding. Sasuke was still unconscious, and there was no way he could carry the woman and Sasuke at the same time, so he did the next best thing, contact any shinobi nearest the compound.

Going outside the house, he was met by the same man that he tried to stop

Uchiha Itachi...

"Itachi-san... What are you doing here?" Naruto asked the man in front of him, frowning at the said man before him

"I need to tell you something... Before I go."

Itachi sat down on the wooden sep on his house, Naruto still frowned

"The Uchiha clan's fate, rests within your hands, Naruto... You were involved with what happened today so therefore you must know the reason."

Itachi turned his head to look at the blonde and smiled. Naruto just kept silent as Itachi turned his head again and viewed the symbol of the red and white colored fan on the outer wall

"If you're going to tell me about the reason why you had to kill the clan then I already know, Jiji told me about it." Said the boy

"Then that means it will be a lot easier to say this to you." Itachi then closed his eyes and smiled

"I want you to protect Sasuke from them..." Said the older Uchiha

"Who?" Asked Naruto

"From the council, Naruto. They want to manipulate him, use him like what Danzou does to his men, I want Sasuke to avoid that, I have already given him a goal, and it will be you that will be his measuring stick, you will be the one to test him to see if he has gotten stronger, for him to succeed with that goal." Itachi said as he then viewed the boy with a smile on his face. Naruto was still dumbstruck as to what Itachi was smiling about now and why Naruto would be Sasuke's measure to complete his given goal

"What will be Sasuke's goal from now on and why?" The Naruto asked Itachi who fell silent

Itachi felt hesitant as to what to tell the boy right now, would he agree? Would he do it willingly? All these thoughts crossed his mind when a solemn look on his face appeared.

"I want him to kill me when the time comes." Itachi said, causing Naruto to literally scream at him

"What? What the hell is wrong with that brain of yours? You're asking him to kill you? Aren't you his brother?"

"But of course I am and it is because of that. I wish for him to end this tragic circle. Please Naruto, once he has come to his senses, don't tell him anything, about the planned coup, the ordered Assassination... Anything, I've done something terrible that no one should have, but it was for the best, be the sacrifice to prevent a wa-"

"SHUT THE HELL UP!" Yelled Naruto, he was angry now, that rage that seemingly kept bottled up unleashed itself upon Itachi. Naruto thought that the man before him was a person he would grow to hate, a damn realist, a pessimist and all things opposite of one Uzumaki Naruto.

"What is it like to have a family? Is it like when your own dad teaches you how to fish with a rod? Is it like when your own mom kisses away all the wounds you encountered when you play and when she cooks for you and you look for protection? Is it the same as having a brother that would fight anyone that wants to make fun of you?" Naruto asked Itachi who remained quiet and looked at the boy who was starting to shake

"I always wanted to have the answers to those questions... I always wanted to know, how were they like? Did they like me? Did they abandon me because they hate me as well?"

"I wanted a mom and a dad so bad... When I saw kids play and their moms and dads took them away to get home, I always wanted to have my hands held by my dad and mom, I wanted to look up to someone cool like my dad, I wanted someone to hug and kiss my fears away like mom." Said Naruto

"But then, I found out about my tenant, that stupid unsympathetic fox!" Naruto yelled at the top of his voice

"He tried to eat me, consume me with his chakra, but then changed his mind, instead he wanted to use me as a strong container."

"And then I find out just three hours ago, that my father was the Yondaime Hokage, I should've been smarter when Kyuubi said he was my 'bearer' back then. I mean, what kind of bastard would seal the Kyuubi into his own son!?" Told the blonde as he punched the wall to his nearest right causing his knuckles to bleed

"I hated it, that feeling of helplessness, that feeling of when there was nothing I could've done. I hate being useless!"

"You hated it too, didn't you? That feeling of being helpless, unable to stand on your own ground, a feeling as if that you can't breathe, can't talk, can't walk!" Naruto said as he then held Itachi by the shoulder

"You should always fight the ones that try to surpress you, trying to control you, you should've done something other than make your own family become lambs for sacrifice to prevent a war, YOU SHOULD'VE TRIED TO LIVE FOR ATTONEMENT RATHER THAN LETTING YOUR BROTHER KILL YOU!"

Itachi was wide eyed, a little child was lecturing him how he needs to live his life. Could it be more ironic? Funny how Naruto could be so foolish yet at the same time, so wise with words that it made him chuckle a little

"Oi, what are you laughing at, Itachi-san?" Asked Naruto continuing to watch the older Uchiha as he tried controlling his laughter which eventually turned to tears.

"It's funny really, how a mere child, lectures an adult and former ANBU captain. How he tells him about how to live his life... What he should've done, and how he could've done it... If only the Uchiha and the Senju were like you, Naruto-kun..." Said Itachi and Naruto remained silent

"I would have preferred you to be the leader of our village when you grow strong, if you grow stronger before Sasuke does, please, save me and save Sasuke." Said Itachi as he stood up, looking up at the glow of the full moon

"I've already informed Hokage-sama to send the ANBU after the OK signal, they should be here any minute, please, whatever you do, do not mention to Sasuke or anyone of what has transpired today." Itachi kneeled in front of Naruto and bowed

"I would gladly appreciate your word... Mirai no Hokage-sama. (Future Hokage-sama)" Said Itachi and Naruto had to give a sheepish grin and a scratch to the head of his, "Alright, I'll do it, I won't mention any of it to Sasuke, although, why leave the woman in here alive?" Asked the blonde

"To guarantee that Sasuke stays in Konoha." Said Itachi, raising his hands to his chest, about to dispel the clone

"Then you have my word, Itachi, I'll make sure that your remaining family is safe." Said the blonde and Itachi smiled a little, he was rest assured

"There's a shortcut here. through the north west, it leads to training area 44, go there and escape, I don't want a witness in the massacre, I've already erased Sasuke's memory of meeting you. Don't worry." Said Itachi and with a cast of a seal, the clone dispersed and Naruto nodded his head, going to the area that Itachi had told him.

The next day:

Uzumaki Naruto woke up, going to the Hokage's office, he entered the office to be met with a non-too-pleased Sarutobi hearing the report from Itachi last night

"Naruto, what were you thinking last night!? You could've died back there!" The sandaime was furious because of the blonde's actions.

"Yeah, yeah, I know... But I couldn't stand by and watch many people get killed back there, I wanted to do something!" Naruto said, and another thought crossed his mind

"Oh yeah, how's Sasuke and the older woman feeling?" Asked Naruto and Sarutobi stood up and looked at the window, a melancholic smile escaped his lips

"Sasuke woke up just this morning, but he refuses to eat, and is very quiet, apparently he is still in shock in what had happened." Sarutobi lit up his pipe an began to smoke

"Uchiha Mikoto however, is in a coma, apparently, she's trapped in a genjutsu, and we don't know how to dispel it, in the meantime, we are doing our best in keeping her alive." Said Sarutobi and Naruto nodded. Naruto smirked a little bit, at least Itachi had the decency to not kill his own mother now and Naruto was a bit glad.

"Naruto, I have but a simple request to you." Said Sarutobi and Naruto raised an eyebrow and asked the old man "You too jiji? Geez, what am I? Some messenger of a god or something?"

The Sandaime tried to stifle a laughter from the blonde, _'Oh, Naruto, if you only knew.'_

"In order for you to be cleansed off from this disaster, I want you to not mention any of the events that you have seen not even to me, and don't mention any of your exploits to Sasuke, he may have a relapse and accuse you of being Itachi's cohort." Sarutobi sat down reading the papers on his desk

"I know that part, Itachi told me about it as well however, I don't know what will happen to the woman that I found that was still alive."

Sarutobi then mentioned to Naruto, "No, don't mention it to Sasuke as well, we'll be the one's handling it."

Sarutobi had to lie, there was no other way, if they want to keep Mikoto alive as well as Naruto, they would have to keep the event secret until Mikoto wakes up. Even then, the council members were not to be informed of Mikoto's or Naruto's survival and involvement respectively.

Naruto had to frown at that statement and then turned his head around going to his sensei's designated meeting

Training area fifteen:

Naruto had arrived at the training ground with a small yawn escaping his lips.

"I see someone's had a good night's rest." Said Hayate in sarcasm and Naruto yawned again. Now normally, Hayate was forgiving, but if someone were to disrespect the sword style that he had worked so hard to learn from the renowned Uzu no Akaishin, he would be gravely insulted. Naruto though, not knowing he did so, was forgiven by the man… To a certain extent of course.

"Very well, since you are very inattentive to class, I am going to have you punished, starting now, I want you to do three hundred push ups, and two hundred pull ups… With weights, now get started!" Yelled the teacher and the student out of his drowsiness, stood up as a pole and gave a hard pressed salute doing his exercises as punishment while watching his sensei lecturing him on the principles of the badass Sougetsu no Terasu

"Sougetsu no Terasu (Illuminating Moon Phase), requires concentration and discipline, it is because of the Katas of this particular sword style is too dangerous for anyone near you and yourself, however, if one is focused enough, a decisive strike is all that you need to finish the job." Said Hayate as he performed one of the said Sword style on the log

"Mikadzuki no Mai… (Dance of the Crescent Moon)" Hayate then split into three people from where he was and the two that were hovering to the left and right both slashing the log only to phase through, Naruto was outright confused, where was his sensei?

Hayate suddenly appeared from above his sword over his head, and slashed the log down completely and cleanly in half, no splinters, no chunks of wood, just a straight, clean and sharp cut on the wooden object.

Naruto was practically drooling while he was doing his pushups, surprisingly going past two hundred already

Hayate knew that the use of the Katana was no myth, it could literally slice a man in half, but when using a Zanbatou, it could literally split a man along with his horse in to two. That's why he took the pleasure in showing the effective show of theory into practice on the misshapen log.

"Naruto…"

"Yes sensei?" The blonde was still doing his pushups

"You've already the number three hundred, go and do your pull ups." Said Hayate and Naruto got up and eagerly did so, he didn't want to anger his sensei again.

A grueling three hours later, Naruto had finished his training with Hayate and made it back to the streets of Konoha, today was one of those days that he could indulge in the food that was served in a platter, or more particularly in a bowl. Naruto grinned, today; he would dine at the table of the gods! Ichiraku Ramen!

Making his way to the aforementioned eatery, he had bumped into an ANBU member, donning the dog mask and silvery hair standing straight up. He looked at the man with curiosity striking him again and then apologized.

Kakashi shrugged at the blonde's attitude, as Naruto made his way towards the ramen stand. All the while, the scarecrow Jounin remembering something that his sensei had given him. He guessed it was time for Naruto to get what is rightfully his, making his way back to the ramen stand, he had seen the boy indulging in the bowl of noodles with haste. Kakashi had to admit, like father, like son.

Gorging on his seventh bowl of ramen, Naruto didn't notice that there was a man on his back until the old cook in front, Teuchi, called for him

"What's the matter Kakashi? Forgot something?" Asked the older man with a grin and Kakashi nodded

"Yeah, something like that." Said Kakashi sitting down as he the child on his right kept inhaling the noodles on the bowl

Kakashi gave a small cough and Naruto immediately stopped, who was the person to disturb his most blissful moment of the week? Naruto looked at his right side and saw the ANBU that was wearing the same dog mask and the same silver hair. Naruto thought nervously that he may had done something to piss Inu-san off. Naruto was sweating buckets when the ANBU went to his kunai pouch and out came… _'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!'_

"I'M SORRY! WHATEVER STUPID THING I DID I'M SORRY!" Naruto wailed and dropped on the ground kneeling and bowing his head multiple times

"Hey, hey, no need to be nervous Naruto-san; I'm just here to give you something." Said the man and finally reaching for the item

Naruto turned up right and saw the man's hand with a three pronged Kunai

"Er… What the fuck is that?"

'_No tact whatsoever, very much like Minato-sensei.' _Thought Kakashi deadpanning his answer

"A three pronged kunai" Kakashi rolled his eyes at being the obvious

"Gee… Aren't we stating the obvious?" Naruto rolled his eyes himself stating it sarcastically.

"Anyway, this three pronged Kunai belongs to you."

"Why?" Asked the blonde, his curiosity was manifesting itself. Kakashi noticed the interest and glint from the blonde and answered him "Because it's your heirloom, this is a chakra amplifying weapon, it's used to as you may probably know by now, amplify weapons to a degree where the weapon itself can serve as a dual purpose. It was used by the Yondaime Hokage for his unstoppable jutsu, the Hiraishin. I'm sure it should serve you well for whatever purpose you have, that or it simply be an ornament on your own, good luck with it." With that Kakashi exited the ramen stand with Naruto looking at him questioningly…

'_how the hell am I supposed to do this?' _Thought the blonde, his thoughts were running on about the kunai in his hand, completely forgetting the half finished Ramen on the table…

The kunai that the Yondaime had, his past, his relic… And ultimately, it will be his future. He will figure out a way on how to use it, for he is Uzumaki Naruto, just recently found out son of the Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato.

* * *

End!

Chapter Preview:

_Hear the song of the wind; bask in its presence, the whimsical, the wild and the free. The wind beckons, time moves, slowly, the gears of destiny are spinning, be steadfast, Fuujin's chosen, for you are hope incarnate. The wind blows with you… Always_

Chapter 4: The Sword of Wind: Hien…

Reminders: I will not be updating for the next week (I guess) depends on the work I'll be doing, I've got exams and case studies to worry about I hope you understand, anyway RnR please!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Sword of Wind: Hien

Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its contents are owned by Masashi Kishimoto. This is strictly for fan purposes only

* * *

A kunai on his right hand, shaped like that of an antennae to absorb lightning and send it to the ground, a lightning rod. The weapon was weird but it seemed, as if it felt so right holding it. It felt as if, a part of himself has been sent back to him.

Uzumaki Naruto began twirling the kunai by his fingers, a feeling of wonder, as he gazed at it from his bed, his arm left outstretched on the kunai. Deciding to let his mind wonder some more time, he turned in for the night and let his dreams do the thinking for him.

* * *

_Dreamscape:_

_The wind rustled the very plane Naruto was on. The place was rather turbulent, everywhere Naruto swings his hand with the tri pronged kunai, the wind followed obediently and swayed there, as he walked, he could see several humanoid figures from the distance, each were as dark as the night and the blood red colour in their attire glowed an ominous red the dark figures then extended their shadows towards Naruto, trapping him by the long strips of the dark visages, ensnaring him in the middle. Naruto looked around in panic, he could see one man raising has hand and out came six other figures from him, his eyes made Naruto quiver. The look of those concentric eyes that were focused on him… It looked like those eyes that could pierce through the soul and suck it all out._

_The six men that had the same weird eyes approached Naruto, their hands outstretched to the blonde. Naruto could feel the fear in him as__ the man walked with only his right leg taking initiative as he walked. As the man touched Naruto's forehead, immediately, Naruto ducked and screamed at the top of his voice_

"_**Don't touch me!" **_

_The tri pronged kunai that he had held in his right hand, immediately glowed in blue light with Naruto swinging the blade sideways hitting the six shadows making them loose their sustenance. Stumbling back, the six shadows froze as Naruto looked at them with a shocked expression and then to the kunai in his hand_

"_This weapon…"_

"_Is my existence." Naruto then proceeded to jump at his attackers, kicking the first in the face, the first one staggered back as Naruto landed on the ground while crouching, he slashed the man horizontally at the waist, going through him and vanishing into the shadows…_

* * *

The sound of the birds chirping in the morning woke the blonde from his slumber, walking outside of his makeshift home, he stared upwards and viewed the canopy above, noticing several rays of sunlight had been piercing from the leaves, he mentally noted that today was another training session with Hayate.

It had been five months since his training with the said Jounin. So far, he has only mastered one of the sougetsu no terasu's ougi, the mikadzuki no mai (Dance of the Crescent moon). The progress, in Hayate's own words, "Torrential when it needs to, but calm like a mountain stream"

Naruto, being the simple child that he is for the moment, chose not to understand the words of his teacher rather; he continued his gruelling task of slicing a tree bark in half.

Now, since his progress with Mikadzuki no Mai, he was training with Hayate at the usual training ground, severing a waterfall in half by using one of Sougetsu no Terasu's most fearsome techniques, Hantsuki no Noboru (Rise of the Half moon)

Hayate sighed as he viewed his student who only managed to sever one tenth of the waterfall. He approached the blonde and yelled

"No, no, no! You're doing it all wrong!"

Hayate then walked towards one of the rocks on the waterfall and stood perfectly still as he stared up at the very top of the waterfall

"Don't think about cutting the water near you; think about cutting the water at the top of the waterfall!"

Hayate closed his eyes for a moment and held the blade at his back with his right hand, raising it upwards, he slowly but steadily led the blade down to his legs, remaining motionless.

"Hantsuki no Noboru! (Rise of the Half moon)" Hayate then swung the blade upwards, the water reacted by the force of the slash, effectively severing the flow of water into two equal parts and then finally reaching the top, causing some of the water to splash violently.

Naruto looked up in awe as he saw the display of power, but then saw at what he thought was an unfair advantage of his sensei; he was using a real sword, as for him? He was using a flimsy piece of wood, for fuck's sake!

"Ano… Sensei, not to complain but… You have a sword, I only have a wood made to look like a sword, isn't that unfair?" Asked the blonde

Hayate grabbed the wooden sword wordlessly from Naruto who looked with a curious expression seeing the man stand again on the rock with the flow of water back, he performed the attack again with similar results.

Naruto's jaw dropped at the sight of the waterfall being severed by the wooden sword given to him.

"It's not the sword that cuts, it's the wielder's mind that does."

Hayate then looked at the solemn expression of his student and smiled, compared to other children he encountered, Naruto by far, accepts his mistakes rather than defend himself for further humiliation, Hayate liked that in his students.

"Now that you know what it looks like, I'm sure you'd like to know how it works, right?"

Naruto nodded his head

"The Hantsuki no Noboru, is a technique that is both offensive and defensive at the same time." Hayate then demonstrated by grabbing the blade on his back and the performing the half circle swing from the top of his head, to the bottom aligned with his legs.

"The semi circle stance can be used to redirect and parry the blow while the fast and powerful strike upwards can be used to counter attack, Akaishin knew her way around the sword that this was one of her most powerful attacks. It's swift enough to land a blow yet safe enough to not to give you any blind spots. Pretty useful actually. The only downside is the range of the attack needed to be performed. The opponent must not be in his or her composure and that the attack must be close to make it connect effectively"

"Wow… This Akaishin person must be pretty cool, if she taught you these techniques!"

Naruto then had stars in his eyes. Hayate had to stop from laughing on the ground from the irony

'_If only you knew Naruto'_

* * *

Hokage's office:

Sarutobi had a smile on his face, today was finally the day where Naruto would be enrolled in the academy, tomorrow? Naruto would start there! All of these were making Sarutobi giddy with excitement as he would finally get the chance to have sometime for himself without Naruto being reported to him again for doing something awful…

A barge in the Hokage's door made the man pull out of his musings, one of his attendants had ran to him, his head was wet with sweat and his panting suggested he came very far, or ran very fast

"Hokage-sama! Naruto had just put a stink bomb at Morioki's Dango shop!"

This is what he meant when Naruto would get into trouble occasionally, now the fools from up north would be laughing their assess off once they see what greeted them…

* * *

Streets of Konoha:

A small blur jumped from rooftop to rooftop avoiding his pursuer from his latest prank, unfortunately, the one he chose to target was a favourite shop for one of the most sadistic and temperamental Jounins that ever graced Konoha's grounds, she was also the most haughty and scantily clad Kunoichi of her group, wearing only nothing but a fishnet, a leather waist strap and a trench coat that covered her privates

Now to some, this amused the onlookers, others palmed their heads in shame and disgust of the "unbashed" child that did this thing. Another group took the prank seriously and had blushes crossing their faces, particularly the male population when they saw the female kunoichi chasing the little blonde.

"Come back here you little mongrel!"

Anko yelled and was fuming from Naruto's prank when the stink bomb managed to hit the place, another thing she was pissed was the fact that she was there when it happened

"You don't mess with Mitarashi Anko and her dango! Now start praying for your head kid!"

"Fat chance lady!" Naruto yelled at his pursuer, who picked up her pace as he went past the water tower. Naruto paled as he saw how fast the crazy lady with snakes coming out of her sleeve was… Wait…

"Snakes! Holy shit!" The blonde cursed leaping on the next roof, he was ensnared by the said reptiles… and then… Pandemonium…

Dango Shop/Ground Zero:

Sarutobi was holding the bridge of his nose as he saw the scene of the crime, complete with medics wearing chemical suits and a gas mask, it's as if biological warfare took place here, he watched as he saw one of his best Jounins being whisked away in a stretcher struggling for breath, holding his breath and screaming…

"The springtime of youth has bloomed on little Naruto! But I think it just bloomed a little too much… Ugh…"

A light tap on his shoulder was what sent him to sleep…

"We're sorry, but we needed to shut him up somehow." Said one of the medics while one was scanning the area with a weird contraption as it sent out beeps

"Oi, quit fooling around, there's no radiation on a stink bomb!"

"What? I was making sure! You never know just what concoction Naruto put in that thing! Remember the hallucinogens in the Hunter Nin corps?" Asked the one scanning the area

"Don't remind me, I still find handling those guys more toxic than handling a paediatric patient. How'd he get access to those things anyway?" Said the one who was holding the later end of the stretcher. The Hokage was waiting patiently for the perpetrator which was about to appear in

"Three. Two. One."

In a plume of smoke, there appeared one grinning Mitarashi Anko holding a very traumatized Naruto by the ankles who was audibly twitching

"Anko… You didn't have to hold him like a dead animal. Put him down and what happened to him?" Asked the wise Hokage

"Oh… A little lesson…" Anko hummed, the Hokage raised one eyebrow at Anko and then looked at Naruto as he continued to twitch on the ground Sarutobi pinched his nose again and counted backwards from ten

"So where would you like to place him?" Asked one of the medics

"Psyche ward and hopefully in solitary confinement. This little guy is just crazy." Said the other one, hauling away the last of the little blonde's victims

"How much time do you think he has on his hands?" Asked one of the medics

"Looking at his handiwork, probably a lot."

"Yeah… Pretty much…"

"So… I heard that Kurenai-san is still single, want to see her by the hot springs later tonight? If you know what I mean." The medic/pervert nudged his friend by the stomach and the man said

"Stop thinking with your dick for once, and you're supposed to be **MARRIED.**" Said replied the other

"Aw, c'mon, it's just a peek between pals, and besides, you need to get some… Unless you're gay that is… Which is perfectly fine for me, just stay the hell away from my crotch alright? I'm married you know." Said the first medic laughing, causing the receiving end of the statement, twitching and started counting from ten to one. Of all the medic teams, why was he assigned to this one? The one with the most idiotic person in the medical field, sure, the whole job description said that you need to have an acute knowledge based on human anatomy and physiology and chakra flow. But it also required another criteria, logic, and since the man beside him was being illogical by seeing a Kurenai in a birthday suit, Lord knows how he had survived studying Medical and Surgical management.

"… You're sick you know that?" Said the second medic

"Really? I feel quite dandy right now if you ask me." Said the man and raised his hand to prove his point almost hitting the medic behind him who growled and then glared at him

"You're impossible…" Said his co-worker

The Hokage couldn't resist doing a facepalm and mumbled something about being surrounded by idiots all the while viewing the boy that was sprawled on the ground still twitching.

"I need to smoke." Mumbled the old leader as he turned his back and face another stack of paperwork…

* * *

Konoha Ninja Academy:

Umino Iruka had just finished his classes and was already finishing up on his desk, stacking the papers in a neat and orderly fashion, the scar faced chuunin happily exited the room, with a smile still on his face.

Compared to the other chuunin, Iruka loved his work being a teacher, just being able to pass on the knowledge he had acquired throughout life, made him quite proud that he was doing something worth wile for his deceased parents to be proud of him and his noble deed.

As he entered the teacher's lounge, he couldn't help but over hear one of his associates about a certain discussion

"Hey, you happen to hear what that Uzumaki kid did this time?"

"You mean the one in the Dango shop? I heard that the kid even slipped by Anko and Gai's guard. That's pretty downright scary don't you think?" The other one whispered

"Yeah, if that brat ever becomes a ninja. He'd be more than just a monster…"

"That kid and his hobbies, I'm beginning to think that Hayate doesn't spend too much time on his manners."

"You know that sick jounin, he's calculative, just like his cold hearted girlfriend, that guy only teaches how to fight and no, 'manners in front of dignitaries' or 'professionalism with fellow shinobi' I know you can't apply it in combat but still… A job is a job and you have to know the ins and the outs especially when handling foreign dignitaries."

"Isn't that what the academy's about?" Interrupted Iruka sitting up from his chair and hands on his hips

"Nah, here in the academy, you learn basics, but having a mentor is different one on one than it is on a public scale, most would get it, others won't and ethics, etiquette and grooming aren't part of the curriculum."

"Oh… I see."

"Nah, it's alright Umino-san… You're still new here and you haven't been exposed by much, but I'm sure you can grasp the whole thing by two or three more months."

"Yeah… Well, Umino-san, me and Hideki-san here are going out for Ramen at Ichiraku's, you goin'?" Asked one of the teachers and Iruka shook his head

"No, I still have to check on the papers from the quiz I gave to the students." Said Iruka and the two seniors laughed

"Okay, okay, just, don't take it too seriously, you'd grow old quicker!"

Iruka sighed and sat down in his desk, scratching his head as the pile of papers from the academy students were checked, all forty-one papers…

About halfway through the pile, Iruka had heard a knock on his door. The scar faced chuunin stood up and opened the door only to find, an old friend if his during his academy and genin days… Mitarashi Anko

It was a known fact back then that Anko was apprenticed to Orochimaru, Iruka somewhat envied her, but then, he himself was the son of one of the most trusted shinobis during the reign of the Fourth Hokage. So in the end, he had hoped Anko for the best.

But it didn't go as he had wished for, Orochimaru betrayed Konoha, and most of the people ostracized his apprentice. Anko was deemed, the snake's bitch, everyone had started to hate her. But Iruka, understanding the trials that Anko had gone through, supported her. Iruka was very kind, his view was influenced by both his parents and the Hokage at that time.

"You are not the person defined by your history and affiliation."

Those were the words that Iruka stood by, people aren't defined by their past or how they were involved, that was what made Iruka turned into a close friend of Anko, and in turn made Anko a lot closer to Iruka…

"Ah, Anko, what are you doing here?" Asked the scar faced chuunin and smiled naively at the woman in front of him

Anko, blushed and turned to look away at the man that had stood by him when they were younger

"Y-yeah, you see Iruka, Hokage-sama told me to give this letter to you." Anko said handing the letter to the chuunin

"A letter to me from Hokage-sama?" Iruka wondered what the Hokage would write to him

"It's about Uzumaki Naruto, you know, lovable blonde kid that everybody hates and the one that pulls those incredible pranks… You do happen to know about what happened later today didn't you?" Asked Anko and Iruka remembered what he heard from the two teachers… Come to think of it…

Iruka sniffed Anko and he felt sourly awful at the smell, holding the bridge of his nose, he immediately drew back

"Eww Anko, you should have at least taken a bath earlier before coming here!" Said Iruka fanning the front of his face. Anko blushed when Iruka leaned closer to her and sniffed her but pouted as the man of her affections fanned his face.

"Hey! It isn't my fault, that kid put a friggin' stink bomb from cat manure and it slipped by me and even Gai! I didn't even notice he entered the damn place!" Yelled Anko

"Anko… Language… You're still inside the school!" Chastised the scar faced chuunin putting up his hands in defense

"Tell ya' what, you take a bath right now and I read this letter, after that we'll meet in front of Ichiraku's to cheer you up!" Iruka stated who smiled again and Anko had another streak of red appearing on her face

"Y-you mean l-l-l-like a d-d-d-d-date?" Anko stammered and spirals started to replace her eyes, getting dizzy from the statement

Iruka, still clueless, scratched his head in confusion and said, "Well… If that's what you want to call it…"

Anko immediately disappeared and started running like her life depended on it.

"Why do I feel like I sealed my own fate?" Iruka asked himself as he entered the faculty and began reading the letter and checking the papers.

* * *

Two hours later:

Iruka was dead tired from grading all those papers, and of course, much to his chagrin, the Hokage had wanted Iruka to be Uzumaki Naruto's watcher to keep him out of trouble, knowing Iruka to be a just man. Of course, Iruka had known the young child since he was a baby, after all, it was the Kyuubi's fault that cost him his parents' lives, and it took a few hundred shinobi, the village leader and a baby just to put the monster down. To him, the greatest sacrifice the village had to make was putting the life of an innocent infant into that pit of danger and the only one to come out alive.

Arriving at the small restaurant, he had noticed a perfectly elegant woman with dark grey hair falling up to her back wearing a yellow kimono and holding a folding fan on her left hand and covering her face the men around her were openly staring at the woman and asking her name, but Iruka immediately recognized the woman with only her hair and eyes.

"Anko? Why are you dressed like that?" Iruka was about to ask that question when a woman, wearing a jounin vest and a bandages around her thighs walked into the two people

"K-K-K-Kurenai!" Anko stammered the fan leaving her face. Almost all of the men that were ogling at the woman, immediately paled and ran off like hell screaming

"I'm sorry, it was a mistake! Forgive me!"

Iruka sweatdropped and asked, "Huh?"

"I-I-I-It's not what it looks like I swear!" Anko said in a defensive pose

"No, It's just… Never mind, I need a break… I just got back from a mission, perhaps a trip to the hot springs would be nice" Uttered the scarlet eyed Jounin walking away towards the hot springs district

"Well, now with all the commotions gone, let's head inside shall we?" Iruka grinned with that statement, scratching the back of his head

Entering the noodle house, the two spotted a spiky blonde haired child with whisker marks on his face eating on his fourth bowl, Anko immediately pointed at the blonde

"You!"

Uzumaki Naruto turned around, half eaten noodles drooping in his mouth seeing a lady with a familiar face

It only took a second, one second for the blonde to immediately register the situation and began to ran outside with noodles still in his mouth, he slurped it as he ran and yelled

"It's the crazy lady! Run!"

Iruka, even more confused, scratched his head and asked Anko

"Did you do something to Naruto for him to react like that?" Asked Iruka and Anko deadpanned

"No."

Iruka sighed his head tilted downward and held Anko by the shoulders, causing the woman to blush

"Anko, I know you more than anyone else, you don't have to lie to me, I'm your bestfriend"

'_Wish it was more…'_

"c'mon, tell me what happened." Coaxed Iruka

"F-Fine… But you're going to buy me dango after this." Said the woman pouting yet again

Honestly, Anko seems like a child sometimes.

* * *

Hot springs district:

As Uzumaki Naruto ran, he had stumbled upon a rather bulky man with a few strands of hair coming out of his chin, the man was wearing the standard Konoha uniform donned with the vest but what caused his curiosity however, was the man's sash around his waist that had the character of Fire in it.

As the man entered the Hot springs Naruto followed suit without being noticed.

As he entered the main onsen itself, he washed himself after the man was done and had sat from across the man to make it that he wasn't noticed. Naruto didn't know why he was interested for the moment, he just was seemingly seeing a ninja, made Naruto pique with interest, just how do they live after their mission? Do they even have normal lives after a mission? What are their thoughts? Their Techniques?

Observing the man with only eyes above the hot water, he noticed a strange giggling sound. The man immediately turned around and Naruto glanced at the area where it was coming from.

To the child's surprise, it was the same man that tried to give him a shot of sedatives from the hospital! It was the man that almost injected a freakin' ten millilitres of anti-convulsants as if he was having a damn seizure! And he was peeking! The idiotic pervert!

"Oi, keep doing that and you'll have no eye to peep with later on." Said the man and the one who was peeping suddenly tilted to the man in the hot water

"Oh, don't be such a party pooper Asuma-san! Aren't you curious?"

"No, because I've already seen one, trust me and my first time wasn't pretty, besides, aren't you Minase? Don't you already have a wife?" Asked the man named Asuma

"Of course! But it's not a man's fault to be looking at other attractive women! It's in our genes!" Said Minase turning his back on the wooden fence. Big mistake.

As he turned his back, a vicious kick sent him flying upwards tossing him out of the onsen, the question was, who kicked him?

Asuma looked on the fence, just who kicked Minase? Scratching his head and striking his beard, he peered in closer to inspect, just as when he was about to peek, a voice had suddenly told him

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Said the voice, Asuma, quickly paled and turned around to find a kid with spiky blonde hair who stood next to him and Asuma immediately jumped. How the…?

"He he.. .Secret training of stealth from the forest, really handy in any situation" The blonde boasted

Asuma leaned down and looked at the blonde

"Was it you who kicked that guy from behind?"

Naruto grinned, "If I say yes, will you teach me?"

"No, why would I teach you anyway? Don't you have Hayate as your sensei, kid?" Asked the man and Naruto shrugged

"Well that's okay if you don't want to teach me, I'll just tell them that there was a dirty old man peeking in the bathhouses and it we'll all consider it over." Naruto said _too _innocently. Asuma quickly grabbed Naruto by his hand and said

"Wait, I may have spoken too early… He he he." Said Asuma nervously laughing, his left eye was twitching. Naruto grinned deviously… _Perfect_

'_Sneaky little brat.' _Thought Asuma as he viewed the blonde who was prancing around yelling he'll learn a new jutsu

"All right, all right calm down. Here, this is a paper to determine what exactly is your chakra elemental affiliation." Asuma then handed to him a small piece of paper

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Asked the blonde, Asuma smirked and said

"Concentrate your chakra in it and we'll find you're elemental affinity, however let's make this double or nothing." Said Asuma who grinned

"If that paper doesn't get cut in half cleanly, I won't teach you a jutsu and you won't tell anybody what has happened here." Said Asuma and Naruto frowned

"What!? Okay! Fine! But if I win, not only will get to teach me a new jutsu you'll also be responsible for any expenses I pay in the ramen shop for at least… Two months!" Said Naruto and Asuma stumbled for a bit but remained his composure

"Fine! Your on kid! We'll see who gets the last laugh!" Said Asuma shaking Naruto's hand and Naruto with his, all the while sparks of flames were emanating in the background

"**PREPARE TO LOSE, BASTARD"**

Both men said and Naruto concentrated on his hand. '_Now how did it go again? Ah! Of course!'_

Letting the chakra flow on his right hand he quickly felt the sensation of his chakra being pulled out and reacting on the paper.

Naruto looked at the small piece of paper in his hand and saw what used to be a piece of paper.

Naruto smiled and his smile grew. Asuma meanwhile, was astonished, never had he thought that the son of Namikaze Minato would get an element completely different from his father or his mother. Granted, elemental affinity had nothing to do with genetics, but still, there are cases and instances of a dominant gene that makes the offspring inherent to the same element, like how the Uchiha are aligned to the Katon and how the Senju were always aligned with Doton or Suiton being a clan "from the forest"

But Namikaze Minato had a different element, a clanless man that created a technique so devastating in the battlefield that all ninja that faced him were given the order "flee on sight"

What was absolutely frightening about this man was that he had an acute understanding of Fuuinjutsu and had a great affinity to Lightning Chakra. Making him probably the one to be called, the dominant gene.

His mother however was a completely different story. Uzumaki Kushina, having earned her name Uzu no Akaishin, was another dominant personality. She was headstrong and was impulsive, compared to Minato's cunning and shrewdness in battle, these two were like tag partners. One hits high, the other hits low. Kushina was a master of swordplay. Simply holding the blade made her look like a graceful maiden about to hand the sword to her beloved but in actually it was the sword that would end the life of any enemy that were mesmerized by her grace and fluidity in battle. Asuma noted that Kushina was as deadly as she was beautiful with her swordplay, combining both Suiton and Kenjutsu in one fluid motion that complemented Minato's decisive and fast approaching strikes.

Looking at their offspring, Asuma had to wonder, did Naruto's chakra, being a dominant type itself, searched for an element more suited to its needs? It is quite possible. Naruto had no parents to be guided with, making him have a free and dominant spirit, doing whatever he wants whenever he wants; perhaps, personalities have something to do with chakra affinity, like how his father was as stern as rock or how laid back he was just like a calm breeze.

His thoughts were disrupted when the young blonde's paper, had suddenly began to cut into smaller pieces until all of it was scattered and flew into the wind

'_Now that's one hell of an elemental affinity.' _Asuma stared at the scattered paper in the air and gawked at the kid in front of him

"Now, I suppose you were the one who was giggling like a little girl here?"

Asuma dumbly nodded, the voice that he heard was somewhat feminine, and suddenly froze when he heard a younger voice muttering a very troubled, "uh-oh…"

Asuma, nervously and slowly turned his head to his right and saw a Kurenai, fully clothed and was pointing a kunai sharply to where he didn't it want to point

The damned medic couldn't be subtle with his peeking. Now he has to take the blame for it

"I can explain…"

Too late…

* * *

One horrified scream later:

Sporting a new black eye, a bleeding cheek and a few scrapes in parts he never thought he had, Asuma and Naruto were now at the local training grounds with the blonde jumping enthusiastically everywhere.

To others, it would seem cute, to Asuma, it didn't fit with the blonde's sneakiness and totally rude behaviour. Asuma didn't find it cute at all, in fact he found it quite revolting when he saw that the sneaky little gnome was jumping around with a twisted grin plastered on his face as if mocking to the older man's face

"Your secret is safe as long as you teach me, it better be good or I'll start blabbing."

Asuma had to control the urge to pummel the blonde, the vein popping in his forehead wasn't a sign of that, no sir…

"All right, calm down. Now, have you ever heard of chakra before?" Asuma asked Naruto and the blonde nodded.

"Good, then this will be easier to explain. How much do you know about elemental affinities?"

"Only that there are five basic elements that every jutsu can be made of; Fire, Wind, Water, Lightning and Earth."

"Good then I won't further get into details; I'll just teach you this typical jutsu, if you have a chakra amplifying weapon, the better, simply put, this jutsu is used to extend one's own weapon reach."

Asuma opened his holster and grabbed two oddly shaped blades that had sharp knuckle guards, concentrating chakra on his trench knives, Asuma let it low onto the knife and converted his chakra to his acute nature, wind

Naruto watched in awe, as a glowing blue light, grew from the tip of the trench knives, bending and reaching up to shoulder level. He could faintly hear the winds howling from the blade.

"This is Fuuton: Hien (Wind Release: Swallow Cutter)"

With the word "Hien" Naruto's mind was suddenly hit with an unknown source of familiarity, looking at the blade, he could feel that the winds were calling out to him, his name, was being whispered by the minute turbulence coming from the wind, whispering and calling out his name

_Naruto…_

_Naruto…_

_We are your weapons… Your existence… Use us… We are yours to command…_

Without thinking, Naruto reached for his back pocket, Asuma's eyes widened as he eventually saw the familiar tri pronged kunai that was famous for being used solely by the Yondaime, Namikaze Minato. His shock was furthered when he viewed Naruto, emotionless, there was no hint of consciousness in his eyes when he raised the weapon straight up with his right hand

"_**The **__**songs of the tempest roar through the night, five songs, five hundred deaths, five thousand lives. Appear on thy blade and give thee thy five songs… Thy avatar has spoketh. Activate by command sword of wind, Fuuton: Hien…"**_

Five strips of swirling light appeared and danced in the air like wisps, as they danced, Asuma could see small orbs of light, following the illuminating strips from the stream, As it flowed in the air, Naruto remained motionless, a sudden glow from the tip of the blade in the middle got Asuma's attention as the light expanded. The fine streams of light then descended and converged upon the tip of the kunai, the light slowly receded and the streams were completely absorbed by the kunai. As soon as the light receded, five characters were engraved on the kunai's handle.

Coming from top to bottom, the characters were; Judgement, Quicksilver, Sky, Crescent and Howl, with the bottom character being highlighted in crimson red.

Coming out of his trance, the blonde's consciousness returned back to him as he saw the tri pronged kunai from above, forming a transparent blue energy sword from the middle blade of the unusual weapon.

Asuma had to drop the cigarette from his mouth, a first time user of Hien and he already has a certain knack to it. Either Naruto was a complete prodigy or was just as lucky as the richest bastard there is, Asuma didn't know in fact, to this extent of Naruto's talent, he was more curious at the blonde. Something was just… Off about him, and he knew just the person who could help him unlock the mystery of the young blonde.

Back at the Hokage office, an old man sneezed as he was reading another volume of his favourite series

"NO! AND IT WAS JUST GETTING TO THE PART WHERE AYAME WAS USING HER SKILLS TO SATISFY SHIO!"

The said man weeped for hours on end…

* * *

To be Continued

No jutsu library this week… :(

Chapter Preview:

_As the years pass, young children are seen, potential is everywhere, but amongst the sea of promising talents, there lies multiple charcoals in the sand, slowly being honed and pressured, to become one of the most valuable items in the world, a diamond…_

Next Chapter: Rippling Gale…

HAHA! Finally updated! Stupid preoccupation! It's fucking horrible in here! First comes the completion then a fucking play!? God have mercy or I am going to go Rambo on my classmate's asswipey behaviour, I swear!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Rippling Gale

* * *

When Asuma had taught young Naruto a simple jutsu, he never thought the young blonde could learn it so quickly, as he smoked another piece of cancer stick, he breathed out the nicotine induced smoke into the air, remembering the scene that happened a few minutes ago… Today he would need answers, and the man that knew most about Naruto was someone very close to him, his own father.

As he approached the Hokage's office, Asuma grabbed one of his handy portable ashtrays and extinguished his cigarette. Entering inside, he was met with a teary eyed, pale Hokage as the old man stared at his blunder on one of his favourite books.

Asuma cleared his throat to make his presence known and immediately, the sandaime was brought out of his stupor. Turning around, the wise Hokage looked at the person in front of the door

"Asuma… What are you doing here? You're on leave right? You don't start missions till the day after tomorrow." The Hokage inquired, looking over to his son, he could see multiple scrapes here and there a black eye and an almost healing cut on his cheek

"What happened to you? You looked like someone who had a run in with Kyuubi."

"Worse… I ran in with Kurenai AND Naruto." Asuma said cringing when he tried to tap to his swollen eye. Sarutobi shuddered at the thought.

"So what is it that made my son visit his old man? I'm sure you didn't come here for I mere pleasantries." Sarutobi then turned to his son, a curious thought came into mind

"Well, it's mostly about Naruto and his uncanny abilities." Asuma replied, a bit laughing and scratching the back of his head

"You mean his stealth abilities that could even fool the elite shinobi of Konoha?"

"Well that and another ability that I found…" Asuma then sat down recalling the events that had happened earlier in the afternoon

"What is it?" Sarutobi was intruiged by this sudden discovery, could it be related to the same night when Hiashi had told him about that mysterious wind based jutsu?

"I don't know about you, but I recently discovered that Naruto has an innate ability for Fuuton based jutsu. I saw it with my own eyes when I taught him Hien… It was like watching a composer during an orchestra. It was… Majestic if you could call it that." Asuma then lighted another cancer stick

"The way he made that jutsu, he quickly analyzed it when he heard the name, 'Hien'. And just like that, one try was all that he needed. It's quite a sight if I must say." Asuma then started to puff another large dose of carcinogenic smoke into his lungs

Sarutobi looked surprised, it indeed was related to that night. The night of the kidnapping of the young Hyuuga Hinata and the night of the visit of that strange man

'_Tell Uzumaki Naruto, once he grows up, Fuujin has taken a liking into him.' _Sarutobi remembered those words, the words of a divine being, a god.

"Tell me Asuma, how much do you know about the ancient myths that revolve around fire country?"

"Hmm… You mean the legends that were mostly passed within the Senju and Uchiha about the creation?" Asuma asked

"Yes, those legends." Sarutobi replied

"Well, I do know that Izanami and Izanagi were the primordial gods in which gave birth to the ancient gods, Fuujin, Raijin and Kagutsuchi. Though Kagutsuchi and Izanami died, the former being the fire god and killed the latter at birth and Izanagi killing Kagutsuchi after he came out." Asuma said scratching his chin wondering where the old man was getting at but decided to finish the legend

"After that, Izanagi ventured to hell to look for his dead wife only to be horrified by what he saw of his beloved wife. He escaped hell after that which, tainted by the stench of death, Izanagi bathe in the ocean purifying himself and out came Amaterasu from his left eye, Tsukuyomi on his right and Susanoo from his nostrils."

"Very well perceived Asuma, I see that you were listening to my stories when you were a child."

Asuma blushed at that comment, being embarrassed about his childhood

"Doesn't mean I get what you're saying about Naruto though."

Sarutobi then turned his chair and looked outside the Hokage's office seeing the faces of the former and current Hokages in the mountain with the stone faces

"The night of the attack of Kyuubi, after it was sealed, I left for a meeting and let the ANBU guard young Naruto back then." Sarutobi explained as he then stood up and went into one of his file cabinets

"During that hour when I was in the council meeting, there came one man that entered the office and slipped by the ANBU's defenses within a few milliseconds." Scanning on the file of October tenth, Sarutobi then grabbed the folder and placed it down on the table and opened the said parchments. Asuma was intrigued by that news, he had never heard of something like this when Kyuubi attacked!

"When he approached young Naruto, he placed four different seals on his body, one on his forehead, one on his lower chest and one on each shoulder, signifying the four main directions of a map." Finding the right paper, he handed it over to Asuma who then looked at the folder in amazement seeing the blonde having the mark that Sarutobi described

"By the time that he had given the seal, it was only then that the ANBU felt a surge of chakra coming from the room, and surprisingly enough, it was Naruto who did it." Sarutobi then leaned back, getting his trusty old pipe and began to smoke as well

"After which, I barged into the room only to find that the man that gave Naruto the seal jumped out of the window and told us all in a loud voice, _'Tell Uzumaki Naruto once he grows up, Fuujin has taken a liking into him.'_"

"So, what you're saying is the legendary god of wind has favoured Naruto to carry on his plans and gave him the power to do so?" Asuma asked still astounded and Sarutobi simply nodded

"I am afraid so, Asuma…"

* * *

The Next Day:

Although it was a pleasant day, Naruto was not a morning person. He hated it how he had to get up early and do some hunting for breakfast. But today, after being told that he was going to start the academy today, he had no choice but to let Sarutobi rent him an apartment that was near the school he needed to keep his 'Misadventures in the Forest of Death' a secret. Also, it was high time that he noticed that he was wearing his old shirt for two straight years and it felt an inkling sensation that they are hugging his body just a bit too much. He never knew how much aggravating it was in studying in the academy

"Geez, I can't believe I'm complaining about the academy like this, shouldn't I be more excited or something?" Naruto thought out loud

Kyuubi on the other hand, remained silent as he watched the young one struggling about his mundane activities with him yawning inside his cage. Thinking that this was boring, the fox decided to investigate his genes. After he saw that battle with the Hyuugas and his unlucky encounter with Uchiha Madara, he felt a sudden change within the blonde's eyes. The sudden surge of chakra in his eyes changed the perception of the environment around him, right now, it was still that dank sewer. But when he fought the Uchiha and the stupid Kumo nin, the dripping pipes stopped, everything became eerily silent and the water felt solid that Kyuubi felt he could walk on.

Kyuubi released the most miniscule amount of chakra that he could do to examine Naruto's cells, particularly his DNA. Kyuubi grinned; a small little detail of what he saw gave him some of the information needed

A very different DNA sequence. A sequence that was dormant, unmoving until the Kyuubi applied a small amount of chakra, that the sequencing of the nucleic acid began to start again. Curiosity was overtaking him, he would need to further study this… Gene sequence.

First, he would need a cluster of cells to find the same, mysterious DNA.

Konoha Ninja Academy:

Arriving at the said academy, Naruto had put out the paper that was given to him to look for the classroom that he was in, finding the right room, he knocked on the door and slid it open to find a scar faced man wearing the standard uniform greeting him by the door

"Is this… The right class?" Asked Naruto and Iruka affirmed him

"Yes, and I presume you are Uzumaki Naruto?" Asked the man

The blonde nodded and Iruka grinned, good manners and a bit of a shy demeanour, nothing too bad. Naruto however, grinned inwardly and a small glint in his eyes appeared.

He laughed maniacally inside and uttered the word in front of his teacher, _'Sucker…'_

To this, the whole class suddenly felt an uneasy tension until all of them dismissed the thought and the introductions began.

Stepping in front of the class, he grinned and introduced himself

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto, I just started to study, I am honored to meet all of you." Naruto bowed, and the students did as well

One of the students at the back, looked at the blonde and immediately recognized him by the wild blonde hair and the three whisker marks on each of his cheeks. A blush had crossed her face as his blue eyes had made contact with her pearl lavender ones. After that incident when he saved her from the kumo nin, she felt exuberantly compelled to return the favour, more than twice than what he had done to her. After that little fiasco, she trained very hard to meet with his level, to be his equal and look at him in the eye. So much so, that she neglected cutting her hair which was now shoulder length.

"Tell us more about yourself Naruto." Iruka said and Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Well, my idol is the Yondaime Hokage and the Uzu no Akaishin. They are the ninja that I would like to become once I grow up." Said Naruto sheepishly giving off a smile

One of the boys decided to give a snide comment

"Yeah right! Might as well let pigs fly if it's gonna happen!" Said one of the children and some of them laughed. Naruto however, didn't find it funny as a vein throbbed on his forehead

'_All right, victim number one it is...'_ Naruto looked at the boy by the seat that was laughing his head off. Ooh, he would pay for that.

Iruka then asked the blonde, "What's your dream Naruto?"

Naruto grinned and pointed to the class

"To become a Hokage like no other!" Said Naruto and some of the kids laughed again

"Good luck wannabe! I'll right your name on the memorial stone earlier than expected!"

Now Naruto was really pissed off. If he could sit right now and plan for his prank, that boy would be rolling on the ground wondering why his eyes were hurting so much.

After that, Iruka then calmed the blonde down and told him of his seat, Naruto was all too happy not to refuse as he needed to plan. Sitting down on his seat, he placed his chin on the top of right palm and remained silent. His sour mood remained until a small voice had called his attention

"P-Please don't mind Shirai-kun, Naruto-kun, he just likes to put people down after all, he's graded as the second best student in the class, next to only Sasuke-kun." Said the girl.

Naruto turned around and saw that same milky pearl eyes that he encountered two years ago… The same girl that he tried to save when she was abducted by the Kumo nin

"Hey… You're that…"

"Y-yes… I-I'm H-Hyuuga Hinata… I-It's a pleasure t-to finally m-meet you, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata bowed and Naruto quickly replied

"O-oi, don't bow in front of me just yet… Wait till I become Hokage!" Naruto said smiling and Hinata blushed at his style of familiar speech to someone he had just met again.

When Iruka started his class, Naruto remained silent for a while still brainstorming on what to do about that overly cocky kid named, Shirai.

So drowned in his thoughts however, he almost missed when his name was called out. Standing up, he sheepishly scratched the back of his head from embarrassment and quickly asked if the teacher would care to repeat the question again

"I said, who was the person to have created and founded Konoha no Sato?"

Naruto simply replied, "Senju Hashirama, Shodaime Hokage."

Iruka nodded and let the boy sit down.

As time slowly progressed to mid day, Naruto had already had a smile on his face, his plan was set in motion when the cocky asshat, shirai exited and unconsciously grabbing his bento.

Lunch time was somewhat foreign to Naruto in the academy. Many of the students were scattered, having their own little group and talked while they were eating. To him, the lunches were either quiet, after morning training with Hayate. Or solitary, one that he usually had when he was at the forest of death. Another thing he was new at was the way they were bringing lunch boxes. To him, his lunches were impromptu. Often something that he just maimed in the forest, or something that Hayate brought him. Naruto grew never having obligated to bring a packed lunch. So when his stomach began rumbling, he was aggravated when he wasn't allowed to leave the school premises during lunch. He was about to turn away when the girl that talked to him earlier had called out to him.

Naruto looked at the girl with one eyebrow raised in curiosity as she was asking for him to share her lunch. But it was quickly accepted when Naruto was all too happy to satisfy his stomach a little. When Hinata gave him an onigiri, Naruto quickly took a bite and found it quite good.

"This is really good Hinata! They're delicious!" Said Naruto chomping down on the Onigiri that was given to him

"Th-Thank you for the compliment, Naruto-kun… I-It makes me h-happy someone appreciates my c-cooking…" Hinata said, blushing while doing so while Naruto said between chomps

"You made these? Wow! You're a really good cook, Hinata-chan!"

Hinata outright turned into a tomato when she heard her name having the suffix, chan

A single scream was then heard around the campus. Naruto simply smiled while Hinata became worried.

"W-What was that, Naruto-kun?" Asked the lavender eyed girl, Naruto simply waved off and said

"Karma, Hinata-chan. Sweet, unadulterated karma." Naruto said laughing on the ground after saying that little speech.

Taijutsu class:

Iruka adjusted his voice by coughing and looked on at his class as the match floor was behind him signalling some of the students that it was THAT time. Students were given the idea when they were little that after learning how to throw a punch, throw a kick and grapple, they would be doing spars for the rest of their time in the academy.

"All right class, today in Taijutsu lessons, we'll be doing spars, to see how far you have progressed in the physical department, this would be done weekly now starting from today till the day you graduate. The first line up would be… Tensou Shirai against Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto stood on the stage waiting for his opponent. When he finally got a good view of the said person that was picking on the new guy, he saw red hair standing straight up, wearing a simple dougi and gloves, he was obviously, much, much taller than Naruto was and was a bit bigger than the fat kid that was eating potato chips earlier.

"Good, after that embarrassment, I'll need a stress reliever, good thing you're here new guy! You're the perfect chew toy!" Shirai said slowly stepping into a stance

"Heh, how was the tear gas for lunch? Did you receive it? By the looks of those swollen watery and red eyes that you have, I guess you did!" Said the blonde who was laughing

Shirai scowled at the new kid and in rage said, "It was you!?"

"Duh, who else jack for brains? Of course it was me! I didn't give the ANBU trouble for nothing!" Naruto then prepared himself for the enraging kid that came at him with fists flying.

Shirai aimed a punch to Naruto's face, in which, the blonde easily parries with his left hand. Swatting the fist away, Naruto then turned around and smashed the kid's jaw with a shattering forearm to the cheek that sent him flying away from the blonde

"What's the matter? Aren't you number two in the class? You could at least pose more of a challenge, crybaby!" Naruto said as Shirai stood up cradling his jaw

"Shut up, Uzumaki! A newbie like you shouldn't raise your voice to someone like me!" Shirai said, but once he finished the sentence, he was already met with a knee strike on his nose, casing blood to spill from his left nostril.

"Crap!" Shirai cursed tumbling on the ground, holding his nose

"That's two strikes, one more and you're outta' here!" Naruto mentioned gesturing his thumb and pointed to his back grinning while doing so.

"You know, as much as I would love kicking your ass over and over again, I'm getting bored. A pansy like you who gets to flaunt his skills to show his dominance makes you a target to be taken down first by other shinobi squads." Naruto then turned his back on Shirai… Big mistake.

As soon as his back was turned, Shirai regained his footing and blindly charged at the blonde. Naruto, not one to notice immediately, turned his face on his back and his left cheek collided with Shirai's fist, sending the blonde rolling on the arena floor and skidding a few good feet from his area.

"Hah. Shows you right, shrimp, a newbie like you can't stand a chance against someone like me! If you want to beat me, you'd have to be an Uchiha."

Naruto merely stood up, a grin plastering on his lips as blood fell from his mouth

"Gotta admit, that's seriously one hell of a punch."

Naruto then dashed forward, as he ran, he could hear his feet slowly quieting down. As the silence of his feet crept over him, Iruka had recognized that move, it was a move that was hard pressed in the ANBU, a requirement that all applicants should learn. It was a move that was very critical in taking out heavily guarded targets and for infiltration purposes. It was so vital that when done right, mission successes were carried out almost always flawlessly.

For ANBU members, they were given the triple S codes in successfully completing a mission, those were Stealth, Silence and Surprise. Once all three criteria are met, each member advances on the given objective.

Because it is a stealth technique, chakra was not a requirement, for ninjas with seasoned experience, a simple chakra to the feet should cushion and prevent the sound of the footwear hitting the surface it was on from happening. But the major flaw was that the chakra that was conjured and meld would have been detected by anyone with enough skill. That was why it was considered one of the hardest techniques to ever be placed in as a requirement, the footwork was then called for it's use in the ANBU.

"Shizuka Aruku no Jutsu (Silent Steps Technique)…" Mizuki said as he was stunned when he saw Naruto's fist making contact with Shirai's face when he got close enough, apparently, the blonde used the technique to confuse his opponent

"That's one of the ANBU's most profiled jutsus, for a kid to learn this kind of thing is… Amazing…" Iruka thought out loud, many of the students were astounded by Naruto's display of an advanced skill

"I think we may have an assassin and saboteur in the making… Iruka, keep an eye out on him alright?" Mizuki then said, as he kept his eyes on the blonde, his jealousy was rising as he saw the blonde walk away… Such skill and display, it was all too sickening for the man and turned away before he could do something that he might regret.

Another person, particularly, a kid with raven black hair and the crest of the Uchiha clan on the back of his blue high collar shirt, was also staring at the blonde with a hint of jealousy, he remembered the blonde, the one that was always alone and always pranked the denizens into a mass hysteria that it was not funny.

As the blonde sat down near the timid Hyuuga, Uchiha Sasuke could not help but clench his fist in jealousy as he stared at the blonde,

Where did he get that skill? How was it even possible for him to master such a difficult technique while still being in the academy?

This irked Sasuke for once, being the dominating person in the class did not help the fact that he still has a long way to go before he could even touch the hair on his brother's head before he decapitates the man.

As his name was called out, he could not help but smirk, he went into the arena and squared off against his opponent.

A couple of minutes later, the fight, no, the brutal execution of one of the genin hopefuls ended, with a smirk on Sasuke's face, not a single hit… _'Take that, Uzumaki…'_

Sasuke then looked at the blonde and gave one cocky smirk that Naruto frowned at…

"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto whispered and Hinata calmed him down

"N-Naruto-kun… Please be understanding of Sasuke-kun… He has, had a very tragic past." Hinata mentioned, Naruto only thought, _'He should be grateful I saved his hide!'_

"A challenge Uzumaki, fight me." Sasuke declared, the whole class swooning in over muttering "Oohs"

The fangirls however, were something else,

"Wai! Sasuke-kun!"

As Naruto stood up, facing the Uchiha, he let his anger slide back down, Hayate had once said that to dive in one's anger is like to plunge in the blade of a dagger straight to the heart

Naruto closed his eyes and then said to Sasuke, "No."

Sasuke was immediately angered

"_What?_" Asked the Uchiha

"I said no. Why should I fight someone like you for no reason? I don't see a benefit or a gain in both our parts. If it is for your ego then I can't help you."

Sasuke was outraged by that statement, gesturing for a punch, he was suddenly stopped when he saw a stream of white lines that started circulating from both cerulean tinted eyes

"Don't mess with me, Uchiha… I'll make sure you regret it."

A threat, to Sasuke normally, a threat would only be a threat if the person can back it up. And no one even dared to back up their threats against Sasuke, especially if he could cream you to a bloody pulp. But this boy, this scruffy looking lonesome orphan made a chill run down his spine, it was the first time that Sasuke was scared stiff for his life. Even Itachi could not compare to Naruto's way of giving off his threat.

Inside the mind of Naruto, the Kyuubi grinned

Finally, after hours of meticulous collection of the appropriate cells, he conducted his experiment, seeing the DNA of the said blonde rotating upon command of his chakra, an immediate change in perception of sight was noted. The nine tailed fox could see in the child's vision of how Sasuke seemed to slow down, that Naruto was able to counter it by sheer killing intent.

But he felt that the DNA still has a lot to hide from the nine tailed fox, he would eventually find it and bring it to its usefulness, a weapon especially for the Uzumaki.

"**Tampering with time and space can have… Different effects on people, Yondaime." **

The Kyuubi gave a toothy grin from his cage, his vision of a true Jinchuuriki is falling in place. Only time and patience was what the Kyuubi needed.

By the end of the day, Naruto exited the academic premises a bit tired from the stress that the teachers put the students through, but not as hard as his training with the Kyuubi and his personal kenjutsu instructor, Gekko Hayate.

Naruto then thought about what happened the other day, the day that he had invoked upon the wind to form the non-tangential blade that was sharper than any steel.

Grabbing his kunai as he walked, he noticed that the characters written were black except for the bottom which was scarlet red. It made him wonder but then all musings were cut off as he waited for Hayate to come, a few more minutes and Naruto wanted to test run this new technique.

Grinning to himself, he caressed the written characters on the hilt of the kunai with his left hand. Steeling himself, he closed his eyes for a moment and let the chakra flow to his arm

"Fuuton: Hien! (Wind Release: Swallow Cutter)" The tri pronged kunai immediately reacted and a blue transluscent blade immediately lit up, a silent howling sound could be heard from the blade that was more than half of Naruto's size, and it was light as a feather. Testing the power of the blade, he sliced the giant tree stump in front of him in a diagonal swing. The upper portion of the stump fell, Naruto noticed how sharp the blade was, the cut was clean, he touched the surface of the sliced area and found it was smooth.

A smile escapes his lips, this jutsu was useful.

Naruto then practiced one of the Katas in Sougetsu no Terasu

Concentrating, he let his chakra flow and then moulds it. He dashed towards another tree stump and performed the said technique

"Mikadzuki no Mai! (Dance of the Crescent Moon)" Mentioning the name, he could feel part of chakra split into three different places

Two illusions of himself were created and ran at the tree stump, Naruto himself, jumped up, the two illusions covering him and then arced to the stump. The real one appeared from the sky and slashed down at the stump, he could feel no resistance when he sliced the wood into two giant pieces of future firewood.

Naruto then saw that the cut that he had performed was yet again a clean cut, the slashed surface was smooth just like the first wooden stump.

Naruto grinned cancelling the jutsu.

A few moments later, Hayate had arrived, wooden sword in hand.

"All right Naruto, let's get started"

A few hours later:

Seven in the evening came, and Naruto was dead tired, that waterfall training was exhausting even to him, at least he could split it now by about passed halfway.

Naruto was getting closer, all he needed was time, and he still had a lot of time left…

Time skip… Two years later:

Naruto had started to realize the wonder of chakra manipulation, when the topic was opened at school, his excitement was elicited when it came to actual practice. It was simple enough, concentrate chakra on the forehead and let the leaf levitate on their heads for a few minutes.

Gone was the scruffy looking outfit that he wore all those years ago, when he coerced Asuma of buying him new clothing, he had forgotten a little detail that he knew he should have said earlier to the man

"Buy me anything in the clothing store that has orange"

Asuma cringed at the color, for shinobi to wear like that, it was like saying, "Pin the tail on me, who ever does, wins a prize!"

Particularly, the wearer's head. So when he was shopping he told Naruto that he needs to wait by the ramen stand, and let him do the shopping. Something Naruto was eager to agree to.

By the time, he was over, Asuma had handed the clothes to Naruto who frowned at the suit at first.

First, there was a black overcoat fitted on the waist, next a pair of sandals that were black, then a crimson tinged T shirt, a skull belt buckle and a new kunai pouch, Naruto had said one thing, "These are nice clothing and all, but where the hell is the damn orange!? Black is... Too gloomy for my taste!"

"Well at least it made me look cool." The blonde thought out loud

Naruto found it a bit boring when the practice was easy to master, so now, before Hayate comes, he had to think a new jutsu.

Over the course of his training with the said Jounin, Naruto was able to learn three of the katas, Mikadzuki no Mai, Hantsuki no Noboru, and recently, Tsukikage (Moonlight). A move that confuses the enemy by letting the chakra flow into the blade and the make the illusion of striking faster like the glistening moonlight, thus the name. This poses for the user for an immediate strike to the blindsided area.

Letting his wind based chakra take effect, he couldn't help but to think of a way on how to use the said chakra to his advantage, he knew that wind chakra can cut, making it having high offensive power for close to mid range fighters like himself. So the nature of the jutsu would have to be mid range at best, close range at worst. But how could he manipulate the chakra to suit his needs for an offensive jutsu?

Stuck in his musings, he remembered one of the speeches that Kyuubi gave him a few years back when he was taught about stealth.

"_**Humans have dulled senses for danger, that's why I'm training you to be aware of danger, Strength is important, but survival comes first. Against other people or against nature, your existence is my existence, and I will not let a pathetic natural calamity like a tornado accidentally kill my vessel!'**_

Naruto shrugged that sentence with a sweatdrop on his head, at that memory Fuujin scoffed at it

'_As if a tornado is pathetic, goes to show how overinflated that damn kitsune's ego is'_

Naruto chuckled at that, and then brilliance struck him.

"That's it!" Yelled the blonde, brainstorming the idea in his head and then gathered the appropriate amount of wind based chakra into his surroundings

Wind was a wild element, it was restless when conjured, kinetic motion incarnate, but wind can also move in one unit, a swirling mass of destruction in its wake, barely containable energy, a whirlwind.

Concentrating the winds on his forearms, The swirling mass of energy began to circulate starting to spin rather slowly at first but then began to accelerate, as the circles of winds started accelerating, Naruto could feel that he was losing control. Gritting his teeth, he had forced to slam the wind induced arms on the tree stumps, the effect was the wooden bark turned to countless splinters scattering up in the atmosphere

Now for the name,

"Fuuton: Reppuken… (Wind Release: Violent Gale Fist)" Naruto said grinning at his work learning something new everyday sure has its perks…

To be continued

* * *

Jutsu section:

Shizuka Aruku no Jutsu (Silent Steps technique): A Rank- A technique that is purely stealth based, it is a difficult technique to master because of it not requiring chakra to cushion the feet and prevent strong vibrations to occur on the ground giving off sound. It is a move only perfected through practice and experience, commonly a test to initiate aspiring ANBU and Hunter Nin applicants as it is a must in performing delicate missions such as infiltration, sabotage and high profile assassinations.

Fuuton: Reppuken (Wind Release: Violent Gale Fist): C Rank- An offensive, wind based jutsu that picks up strength the longer it is held. It has the ability to deliver high pressure cuts from the winds and pushing force that is enough to disorient team strategies of enemies.

With that now done, I present to you, the Preview Section!

Chapter Preview: The rustling leaves of the trees are sent up in the sky, with the wind letting the leaf ride higher.

Deception is but a game, vengeance and hatred are forgers of death…

Chapter 6: Rustled Branches…

Phew, talk about semester break! Oh yeah!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Rustled Branches

Progress is like wine, the more it is struggled or stored, and the sweeter or tastier victory is. One's honing to perfection can be perfectly understandable. It puts one in a better leverage, a better ground and a better way of handling things.

When it comes to this, talent doesn't become a factor, merely an incentive when progress is reached. One does not usually need talent to achieve what they want in life. Only the determination and drive to succeed is the goal that they wish to achieve. Excellence means doing what you are good at, something that you honed after countless toiling.

That's why, after two years of training and learning excessively, Uzumaki Naruto had deemed himself, with Hayate's approval of course, worthy of being a shinobi… Genin rank.

Six years in the academy had made him into a fine, young and aspiring soldier of the leaf. He took his classes not that seriously, thinking that history won't help in living the life of a shinobi who in reality, have no time to dawdle in the past and have to live in the present.

However which way he put it, he couldn't understand why he had to learn such pile of relics when you don't even have the time to properly take a minute to breathe in the midst of a battle. However, that didn't mean he was stupid, in fact it was the total opposite. He was a fairly smart individual; often he showed his mind at work when doing the most ingenious of pranks such as replacing the school bully's snacks with barnyard fertilizer once, not even being noticed by neither Mizuki nor Iruka in the slightest. Said boy came crying to home one day but seeing as there was no evidence to prove of Naruto's guilt, he was almost always left unharmed. A sinister grin always escaped his lips when nobody except Shirai was looking at him. One day, said plastered toothy grin, made the liquid in his bladder flow to the ground like a waterfall.

Naruto turned away from that sight, in both humor and disgust. Honestly, picking a fight with Naruto? That person would be experiencing hell on earth for every insult that the boy dealt to the blonde.

Next day, Shirai had to quit due to "Family Problems". Not surprising to say the least, Naruto turned into the terror of his class, whoever messed with him, Naruto would throw more than what was in Hell's pocket and shove it into any opening he could find on your body, except privy parts of course.

Though he was quite the rowdy boy, that didn't mean he didn't have friends. On the contrary, Naruto established a lot of friendships within his class, particularly with Hyuuga Hinata, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chouji, and Aburame Shino. The odd bunch that many of their classmates would often tell but Naruto was a good student, often shown in Taijutsu, and Ninjutsu practices. But even he ranked average due to his academics dragging him a bit downward. Nara Shikamaru, the kid with an almost abysmal grade due to his lazy nature, so lazy in fact, he could sleep through tests! A trait that made Naruto wonder how calm Shikamaru was in dealing with pressure. Akimichi Chouji was a bit of a smart person, but his physicals were in the below but not by much. He could push Sasuke away with a swat of an arm if he wanted if only he wasn't so… Unconfident.

Aburame Shino, a very strange boy in Naruto's opinion. He keeps his ideas most to himself, speaks when he thinks it's appropriate and when he speaks, it's usually a comment on how the people around him do things.

Hyuuga Hinata, a shy individual but with a fighter's skill. She was the number one kunoichi in her class, only outclassing Sakura in Taijutsu. Naruto thought it was a given, Hinata had a blood of the Hyuuga after all, having an exclusive Taijutsu style as well, gave her the edge out of most girls in her class. To Naruto, he recognizes Hinata's strength and strength of character. He had heard her once when they were talking about how she wishes to continue to improve herself so that one day, the person that she admires would look at her as an equal. Naruto commented her that she will be able to do it, if already, Naruto himself was already impressed. Said words got her blushing like a tomato all day that Naruto swore she was sick.

Throughout the class, he hadn't notice anyone, worthy of his attention except his friends of course. Thinking that the rest were a bit too unrealistic, he wagered that out of the thirty-six of these people, nine would probably enter into the shinobi life. He had already pinpointed his friends to be one of these people.

Inuzuka Kiba would be considered into his small list as well. The boy maybe brash and a bit of a jokester himself, but he knew his way around. He always cuts classes and always prefer playing or training with his pet dog, Akamaru. To Naruto, training was already a certain area that the boy had taken seriously, so it made sense that Kiba would become one of these nine members

Yamanaka Ino, a girl with long blonde hair who was headstrong and bossy. Her supposed lapdogs were Shikamaru and Chouji due to their fathers' history. Growing up with each other, the three were already getting along… Somewhat… Though Naruto knew she was from a ninja clan, he thought that if she could remove her wishy-washy attitude and her crush towards the last Uchiha, she could make it.

Haruno Sakura, a girl with pink hair and an attitude problem. She's smart yes, but her wits were her only asset in the academy, her physical abilities were nothing to note at, though she remains stable in the middle of it and can sometimes lash out and deliver a wickedly strong punch. Though like the Yamanaka child, she was as obsessed with the last Uchiha and thought that what hampers with her potential was ironically enough, her own motivation.

Then there was Uchiha Sasuke, total asshole and prick of the whole class. A genius, someone who had a grasp of everything that was taught to him. His words and demeanour were totally different when he was six years old before the Uchiha Clan was almost wiped out. Naruto began to wonder just what did happen after both Mikoto and Sasuke were hospitalized. He realized it when both of them found each other training in the forest alone…

Flashback:

"_Uzumaki… Fight me…" The Uchiha demanded the blonde who outright refused at the much explaining once more, why he wouldn't want to._

"_Are you afraid you'll lose to me? Coward?" Sasuke insinuated, smirking while saying so._

"_Your swaggering wouldn't get you anywhere with me Sasuke, you should have known that by now. Why are you so persistent anyway?" Asked the blonde_

"_Because I need to kill him, I need to know what my level of power is; defeating you would only be a stepping stone to reach my ultimate goal, killing that person… Who betrayed my trust, killed my father, my mother and my clansmen." Sasuke frowned as thoughts of his emotionless brother began to flood his mind._

_He could remember as Itachi had slain both his father and mother in front of him. There, lying on the floor, the blood of his father was scattered, the man obviously swimming in his own pool of blood. His mother was choked and was subjugated by Itachi's powerful Genjutsu locking her mind processes, Mikoto, ending up dead._

_Sasuke's blood boiled every second of what Itachi had put him through in Tsukuyomi, the horrors that Itachi had executed, the slaughter, the death, the gore._

_When Naruto had heard of Sasuke's statement, he began to wonder didn't he know his mother was alive? But in a comatose state? Come to think of it, whatever happened to Mikoto? Has she awoken yet? Or is she still lost in her coma? Whatever the case, Naruto let the thought be remembered and investigate the hospital and the Hokage's office later on. Unknown to many people, Naruto was a participant of the night of the massacre, encountering a man wearing a spiral mask that had the voice of a deep and aging man who absolutely had no compassion left in him or whatsoever. The night where he made a promise to Itachi that if Naruto gets stronger than Sasuke first, then he would save Itachi and let him redeem himself and ask for reconciliation with the younger Uchiha. However if Sasuke ended the one stronger first, then Naruto would neither have say nor part in what would be the brothers' death match._

_Naruto had to turn his back on the Uchiha and walked away. A solemn look on his face as he punched the nearest tree his fist could hit on, fully destroying it in the process as he unconsciously tapped into his wind chakra. His eyes flickered in anger with one thought on his mind._

'_One day, the council will pay dearly. Their actions within Konoha are hurting people more than they can give a benefit.' Naruto gritted his teeth leaving behind an even more furious Sasuke_

"_Come back here Uzumaki! Fight me!" Mentioned the Uchiha, Naruto merely looked at him with his head turned_

"_Someday Sasuke, we will, for now, let me tell you something. If you only see with anger, then you won't see the whole truth. But when you do, come talk to me before you decide to take action and I might help you. Not everything is what it seems…" With that, the blonde turned away, leaving behind the only recorded last Uchiha by the training grounds alone in the dark night in the middle of the tamed forest…_

Flashback ends

That was probably the only conversation that the two had, as the days passed quietly, the day of the graduation was getting near. He knew that most of the class would probably pass but he also knew that of the thirty six students, these students that Naruto predicted were the ones that had the most probability to pass along with him.

Naruto always thought that being a shinobi, means that you must be ready physically, emotionally and spiritually. The life of a mercenary ninja was hard and twisted. It drove men and women into fits of insanity totally changing one's attitude as they witness death. The scars that these people experience are not merely superficial. Mental and emotional scars are left behind and blows to morale destroy people within slowly.

Shinobi were required to be prepared for anything and being mentally prepared is a necessity.

Naruto stood up as he answered a question and sat down again, a complacent look took over his face as his boredom increased. Ever since learning the three katas of the Sougetsu no Terasu from Hayate, the said Jounin refused to teach him the rest saying that Naruto was still not ready yet and he would teach it to him once he's worthy enough.

Naruto seethed at that, his head was having a large vein popping at the annoyance by the fact that he still sucked in layman's terms.

Deciding to leave after school was over, he stood up after class and left, leaving behind some of his classmates and making his way to the training grounds…

Another Jutsu came to mind when Naruto was at the training grounds, he went to a series of four hand seals, Reppuken came to life with his right arm and ran it through the tree forming hole towards the other side, his fist still on what used to be a surface of pure hard wood.

He had thought the process of how the Reppuken was a constant surge of spinning wind and energy. How about contained and instantly released wind? Like how an explosion occurs? With that thought he wondered just where would he gather the energy and release the in a flash?

'_Did you know that the most accurate pointer of the human hand is the index finger? It's such a versatile thing that the thumb could be used like a crosshair.' _

Leave it to a god to have the answers to everything, Naruto's eyes rolled

Gathering the necessary amount of chakra to his index finger, he focused his concentration in gathering the wind natured chakra to the tip of his index finger in his right hand; soon he could feel the pressure on his pointing finger. And soon enough, the contained wind became an uncontrollable force his left hand supporting his wrist to maintain his control. Naruto gritted his teeth; a bead of sweat falling from his forehead, his control was slowly waning. He pointed the index finger to the ground and then fired it as he lost control.

The result was him, being fired into the air shot diagonally straight like a rocket crashing on the foliage behind him.

The blonde stood up, a feeling of surprise and then joy suddenly escaped him. The area where he stood was now a hole three feet deep, with the diameter about two feet. The smouldering dust from the crater settled, as Naruto's pride slowly grew

"Now for the name…"

A point, to aim was to point, to direct, to guide. One cannot throw shuriken at first without aiming or pointing.

"Ichuu no Kaze (Point of Winds)"

Naruto then re-performed the technique; he closed his eyes and collected the wind chakra at the tip of his right index finger, about the time he was losing control, he aimed it towards a tree instead of the ground and fired the wind based technique. The recoil of the shot made Naruto skid backwards for a moment and the projectile moved at the speed of a bullet, piercing the tree it collided and destroyed the rock behind as well scattering the boulder into smaller pieces.

Satisfied with the results, the blonde left the training grounds, deciding it was satisfactory…

As the days reach closer and closer to the Genin exam, Naruto's progress continues to grow, and during one of those days, Naruto's mind would often venture to talk to Fuujin about something or to have a chat with Kyuubi.

One of these conversations with the wind god, involved the written Kanji on the handle of the tri pronged kunai

Flashback:

'_Hey, Fuujin… What are these characters for?' Asked Naruto viewing the prized weapon of the Yondaime_

'_They're indications of how strong you can control the winds. It's only on the first level right now. You can call them songs if you want' Fuujin mentioned this, while crossing his arms and nodding solemnly_

'_But why do I need an indicator for my control? And why songs?' Asked Naruto_

'_That's because those four seals are what gives you the power to manipulate the wind. It's to note your progress, it's also a limiter. Because once you go Fuutei (Wind Emperor) you are granted with almost near infinite control of the wind. That also means it can get out of hand, so what Amaterasu and I did was put a limiter and gradually set it free once we know you could gain full control of Fuutei. Songs, because the indicators here are like music sheets. If the kanji isn't red, then chances are you can't play a score that you don't know. Each song has a different ability, as for the abilities, you have to find out for yourself. All I could say is that you have a long ladder to climb, Naruto.'_

Flashback ended

Naruto remembered the conversation oh so well, quickly looking at himself at the mirror in his bathroom, he removed a few strands on his bangs and there came the seal Kanji, Hoku (North)

"I'm the wind god's chosen all right."

During his musings, he could also remember his startling conversation made by Kyuubi a year ago…

Flashback:

"_**Hello brat, I have some good news to**__** tell you." **__Kyuubi suddenly mentioned his host being drawn in to his inner mind away from the lecture_

"_What is it, fur ball?" Naruto asked annoyed by the fact that Kyuubi could always pull him inside his head anytime_

"_**It seems that you are suffering from some form of mutation." **__Kyuubi answered him flatly, Naruto immediately shouted anger visible in his eyes, the stories he had heard about mutation was not very beneficial at all_

"_What!? How can that be a form of good news!?"_

"_**It's good news because with this, you just started a kekkei genkai (Bloodline Limit)" **__The giant fox then escaped a bemused smile on its jaws_

"_**Not just a kekkei genkai, a doujutsu to be exact. Brat, have you ever heard of biological adaptation?" **__The nine tailed beast asked, Naruto answered him_

"_Well, only the fact that the body tries to adapt to the environment around it." Naruto scratched his head from that answer_

"_**Yes, it's true, the same rule applies in the law of evolution, a specie's life is dep**__**endent upon how this creature adapts to the environment around him down to the genetic level, much like how humans continue to strive for their mental ability. In your case, your father's body was trying hard to adapt to the speed of the jutsu he created, the Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)."**_

"_**Because of this, his base genetic code became dormant, it only boosted when the Yondaime travelled when bending time and space for the instant transportation skill."**_

"_**When the Yondaime**__** bended the time and space folds, his genetic code goes to a drastic synthesis. The synthesis became dormant upon giving birth to you. You because you received a highly programmed synthesis, but you just received fifty percent of the completed DNA sequence, not that it's a problem, your own body would complete it regardless. I discovered this when I was rummaging through your cells."**_

_Naruto had to let that thought shiver down his spine, he suddenly felt violated as if someone raped him. __Who knew what else could the fox do to him?_

'_Uh, yeah, listen, Kyuubi, if you want to tinker around my body again, ask for my permission first. Oh, and thanks for the info, do you know how I could activate this?'_

"_**What the hell are you talking abut, brat? As for **__**activating it, I suggest doing it slowly. Doujutsu are sensitive topics, the wrong amount of chakra could leave you blinded for the rest of your life." **__The Kyuubi warned, even if Naruto had his regeneration, the Kyuubi feared it wouldn't be enough._

_A cold sweat escaped from Naruto, as he heeded Kyuubi's caution_

_Another question came into mind from the blonde,_

"_So what does my Kekkei Genkai do?"_

"_**From what I could find, is that **__**your eyes have the ability to slow down the perception of time in you the faster you are. Imagine yourself running having the velocity, you could see and counter the opponent's movements with ample time. It doesn't predict movements like what that accursed clan's doujutsu can do. It also has another ability I would like to call, as a tactician's eye. It is able to deduce and breakdown strategies, it can suggest multiple moves into your mind at blistering speeds. However, this eye like all doujutsu, have a weakness. In order to slow down the perception of time, your movement is required, the faster you move, the more effective it is. So you need to be in constant movement. You could only affect those that are in your line of vision, anything that you can't see, you won't be able to affect. Finally, you can only use it for a little of no more than two minutes at a time, the information that this eye presents forces into your brain, if you continue past your limit, it could very well shatter your psyche. I wouldn't propose doing such an idea." **__The Kyuubi then showed the sequence that he mentioned making it glow and then set it in front of the blonde_

"_**This is that particular **__**sequence; these were the errors that I found. These 'errors' are the weaknesses of that doujutsu, and although it tempts me to alter it, I could possibly do more harm than good. There's no telling what could happen if I altered even just a single strand." **_

Flashback ended

Naruto thought it was very considering of the kitsune, but probably, the said fox only wanted to maintain his existence and mess with an already golden egg. After all, why mess with something handed over a silver platter?

Naruto shrugged at that comment. Soon, he found himself mulling over his own home, with no sensei, he had a lot of free time that did not involve training.

Looking at the calendar, the blonde noticed that there is only a little more than a week left before graduation. He wasn't worried though, he shouldn't be after all, he was confident in his abilities and he was damn well sure that he was going to pass the stupid test.

Genin Exams:

The day had finally arrived, the day that would be the starting milestone of Naruto's career as a ninja. Looking at the hopefuls, he immediately saw his friends standing in one corner talking. Naruto happily approached them, and thought about that this would be the last time that they would be seeing each other wholly before they are to be taken away by their career.

"I was so nervous last night… I don't think I'd be able to pass… I didn't even get t eat my favourite potato chips today…" Chouji grumbled, that was a shocker to Naruto though, Chouji not eating potato chips was a serious offense against Chouji's nature, Though Naruto thought that if Chouji didn't eat his chips properly, that meant that the pleasantly plump shinobi was serious about the exam and was anxious about it. But Chouji would later smile when Shikamaru began to speak

"There's no need to worry about this, we'll deal with it like we always do. Besides the only thing that would be required to learn are the Bunshin, Henge and Kawarimi (Clone, Transformation and Substitution, respectively) all things like written tests won't be included, you'll just be assessed by mastering these three jutsu." Shikamaru explained

"That would make the tests a lot more pressuring… Seeing as that one of these three jutsu are the only things that will make you pass… And I hear that do draw lots to know what jutsu to do. You're unlucky if you managed to draw out the jutsu you aren't supposed to be good at." Hinata mentioned

"That's just mere speculation Hinata-san, as a member of the Hyuuga clan; you are surely inclined to be Genin after this, why? Because there is an incentive for an additional Jutsu and Taijutsu spars against a graduate of last year. How do I know this? I have heard my father say it to me, and gave me a sort of last resort in order to graduate should I fail one part of the test." Shino then adjusted his sunglasses and Naruto suddenly spoke

"You know, I'm always impressed by your quirks Shino, no matter how dire a situation is, you always seem to be thorough." Naruto grinned and then turned to Shikamaru

"And let's not forget cloud head here, he doesn't need to be nervous, he's sure to pass, one thing that is a decisive factor in these things is that if the shinobi has a calm mind, every move he will make will be coordinated. Shikamaru, I don't believe I've seen you before crack under pressure."

"Tch… And the troublesome hell raiser makes his appearance. Ever had that lingering thought called a conscience escape you when you made Shirai drop out of the curriculum?" Asked Shikamaru, Naruto merely smiled and asked the pineapple headed genius

"Oh, whatever do you mean Shikamaru?"

Everyone merely had a sweatdrop on the back of their heads

"I must instate that you Naruto, are merciless when taking down someone, feigning ignorance cannot escape the stain in your hands…" Shino stated

"You hurt me Shino-kun! Why would I, an innocent, sweet and hardworking boy be accused of bringing down Shirai-kun? You hurt me! Hinata-chan don't you agree with me?" Asked Naruto giving of a deer in the headlights look to the girl

Hinata blushed when the blonde looked at her and Shikamaru replied

"Hardworking? Yes, sweet and innocent? I'll cut my own throat before even that happens. You just feigning innocence already make my knees shiver at the thought." Replied Shikamaru

"Wah! Hinata-chan! Please defend me! I didn't do anything!" Replied Naruto, fake tears were already falling from his eyes as he hid behind Hinata causing her to blush and then said to her friends

"P-Please stop accusing Naruto-kun already guys… I'm sure he's just doing it by teaching him a lesson…"

"Please… Hinata? You believe Naruto's obvious tirade? That guy doesn't even show a hint of remorse when he poured paint on Shirai's underwear or when he spat into the poor guy's ear. Even when he busted his pants, he's evil I tell you." Shikamaru said

"You know I've got to admit that Naruto goes overboard with his pranks sometimes. Just look." Chouji said pointing at the blonde when he was pouring super adhesive glue over the chalk jar, the one Mizuki always used so that he wouldn't be bothered to go back to the faculty.

"You know Naruto, Mizuki won't be happy when you've poured sticking material into his private set of chalks." Shikamaru warned him, the blonde merely stared at him blankly and said

"… Your point?"

Shikamaru just gave an exasperated sigh and said to their friends

"Whatever, it's not like Mizuki would be the one who would blow the lid of the can to us. Naruto's pretty used to it by now so it'll be no surprise." Said Shikamaru as he led the group to their seats.

Naruto, finished with his diabolic skill for making Mizuki pay for the countless exercises that he pushed on the blonde making him more fatigued during class, decided to head upstairs with a smile on his face and happily humming a little song.

During that time, it was then that both Ino and Sakura had made it into the entrance

"I was here first Ino-pig!" Replied the pink haired girl

"I was here first Billboard brow!" Said the yellow haired girl, identified as Ino

Naruto looked at them with mild interest. Really, hanging out with them would totally ruin his time. Seeing as the two girls were bickering in front to death, the blonde sitting above just looked disdainfully and then bowed his head on the desk to sleep.

When both girls were done bickering, they turned to see that the blonde hell raiser was asleep.

Now to most of their classmates, Naruto was the scariest thing that ever came out of a hole. There were rumours suggesting that the blonde was the mischievous devil incarnate. That sadistic, pure, maniacal, evil grin was the trademark of the spiky blonde. Of course, that little rumour was spread by one Haruno Sakura who was a bit miffed with Naruto since disturbing the peace of the classroom. The blonde was oblivious to the rumour though.

Although the blonde haired boy didn't do anything to her yet, her first impression of Naruto was that he spelled trouble. How right she was. Naruto was often enjoying other students suffer, particularly Shirai who, on Sakura's mind, was more of a half decent shinobi than Naruto was. Or that was what Sakura often thought. Little did she know about Naruto's mindset. When she was near the sleeping blonde, she merely gave a look of disdain for a few seconds and sat on her seat at the top. Although Naruto would just shrug off the look, she just didn't like him. Naruto would care less, but the one who retaliated the frown was surprisingly, Hinata. Who looked at the girl with her own frown.

"Hinata, just leave her alone. She hasn't done anything bad to me per se. She just hates my guts." Chastised the blonde to his friend who then replied to him

"But she dislikes you without a reason… I don't see why she does that…" Hinata mentioned, about to mention what the pink haired girl had done but decided to have pity on the girl. If she let Naruto loose, who knows what he'll do. She wasn't concerned for Sakura, but she did have pity. Lord knows how she will react to Naruto's putdowns.

"Mah, just forget it Hinata. You can't please everybody, Sakura happens to be that kind of person. She's harmless so why should I bother?" Asked the blonde and Hinata merely shook her head and smiled

"Naruto-kun, if the others find out about this side of you, I think your reputation would be ruined." She giggled her hand on her mouth to maintain her poise. Two years of knowing Naruto made her more confident of herself, though her improvements weren't in leaps and bounds, at least she barely stuttered, only when Naruto often teases her without him even knowing it.

"What? I can't be nice once in a while? You know me, Hinata! I adore having fun as much as the next guy, but I just don't pick on people without a reason! I'm not Shirai, you know." Said the blonde and Hinata had to nod. True, Naruto is a rather harmless boy. He may be dangerous at times and humiliates people, but that is where the similarities between him and Shirai's end.

Hinata simply smiled at the blonde boy's nature. Her blush emanating from her pale cheeks.

A few minutes later, Iruka and Mizuki arrived, with folders in their hands. Everyone became eerily silent, as if something horrendous was about to occur. Of course, everyone was tense, today was the day that would decide their future.

Mizuki unconsciously picked up a piece of chalk from his container. As he grabbed one, his found out he couldn't pull his arm off the said box. Yanking his arm, his hand was still stuck at the said jar, he then wildly, smashed the said jar to the blackboard but found out the said jar was plastic, so Mizuki found the hard way that plastic was not brittle.

Earning a groan of pain, he glared at the sleeping Uzumaki up on the seats and then simply told Iruka that he would be back. Iruka shook his head one more time at the blonde as he began his exam

One by one, each student were called and was asked to perform a jutsu, according to what they got from the small container that Iruka brought, in the middle of the evaluation, Mizuki came back his right hand closed into a fist and red rings indicting pressure on his wrist. He couldn't write with it so he had needed an assistant write his evaluation

Once Naruto's name was up, Mizuki smiled wickedly at this, _'Sweet vengeance'_ was his thought.

He then grabbed something from his back pocket and placed a small note on the back. It was a chakra suppression seal, something that limits the said user's chakra. Mizuki had planned to use this on the demon brat to suppress his chakra later on. But desires call on more right now than needs to Mizuki, so he rigged the jar when no one was looking and placed it on the top so that Naruto was sure to pick it.

During Naruto's stay in the academy, Mizuki noticed how Naruto would put a little extra effort in producing the bunshin no jutsu (Clone Technique), the scourge of people who have high chakra capacities with very poor control. If Mizuki were to limit some of that chakra, the blonde would unknowingly need to adjust his control which would be difficult for his type.

Naruto unknowingly grabbed the paper. Immediately, he suddenly felt drained, he froze for a few minutes and looked at the paper with wide eyes a bit shaken…

'_What the hell…?' _Was Naruto's train of thought as he felt dizzy when he held the paper, he could feel his energy being sapped from him, he felt slightly lightheaded when he stood in front and Iruka asked him when Mizuki mumbled into his ear

"Alright Naruto, I want you to perform two clones using the Bunshin no Jutsu." Iruka mentioned. Naruto merely nodded and performed it.

Going through the handseals, Naruto concentrated his chakra and molded, everything was going well at first but suddenly, he felt something that made him completely hesitate, the chakra around somehow didn't feel right, something was missing, something made him feel that he was _lacking._

When the jutsu ended, Naruto produced two bunshins, two dead ones that were as pale as cotton.

'_Shit! It didn't work!' _The blonde cursed eyeing the two bunshins. He scowled at the paper and then looked at Mizuki who was slightly smiling. Naruto narrowed his eyes on the man and scowled.

'_Oh wrong move deadbeat. You mess with the bull, you get the horns.' _Naruto said, firing up his mind for another set of pranks that he would induce on the hapless chuunin

"I'm sorry Naruto, you fail…" Iruka mentioned, Naruto feeling Mizuki's smirk growing larger, decided to play along

"Iruka, aren't you being too harsh? I mean, I know Naruto might have just slipped up." Mizuki chastised Iruka but the man remained firm

"No Mizuki, if this was a mission, a small mistake could cost every one of Naruto's comrades to die, I'm sorry Naruto, but the school policy states that there could only be one chance in passing the annual exam, I'm sorry."

"I understand Iruka-sensei…" He mocked his own sadness and tried to look downtrodden. He walked away from the classroom with his head down while some of his classmates laughed at him, the failure.

When his back was turned from everyone, a sinister grin escaped his lips and looked back at the aqua haired chuunin before going out.

Academy rooftop:

Naruto viewed the children below proudly wearing their headbands, the blonde merely yawned in boredom, as he awaited his target to arrive.

And as timing would have it, there arrived on the rooftop was the said chuunin, a faux smile appearing on his face. Naruto assumed the man staged this moment, after all, the exams were over an hour ago.

"Mizuki-sensei, what are you doing here?" Asked Naruto looking at the blue haired man in front of him, Naruto inwardly smiled, step one, act completely innocent, convince the enemy that you are not on to them

"Oh, right on time! Listen Naruto, I felt sorry to what happened to you back there in the exam, because of this, I am actually giving you a second chance." Mizuki said and Naruto inwardly frowned, he did not dare show his true intentions to Mizuki

"You see, Chuunin examiners don't normally do this, but I'm exercising my authority to give you a make up exam."

Naruto nodded and said to Mizuki, "Go on…"

"This exam involves everything that you have learned in the academy; it requires you to use your most honed skill as a shinobi… Your stealth." Mizuki said and Naruto nodded

"Your faux mission is to infiltrate the Hokage's office, go into his personal archives and steal the forbidden scroll; also, I'll give you extra points if you could learn one jutsu from the scroll."

Naruto inwardly grinned, _'So that's his game, don't worry Mizuki, I'll do even better, and beat the shit out of you once I'm done.' _

With that, Naruto extended his arms to handshake to Mizuki, "You got a deal, Mizuki-sensei."

Mizuki looked weary but he shook Naruto's hand with his own, albeit reluctantly all the while suddenly remembering what his mother always said to him when he was young

'_First rule to making deals with a devil… Don't.' _Somehow, the said man felt like he had just stepped into something that he can't scrape off his shoe.

'_This better not fuck up.' _Mizuki thought, turning his back on the blonde, with the blonde doing the same. A sinister and dark grin crossed over their faces.

'_You're going to wish__ you were never born, 'sensei'.' _Was what the blonde thought before finally vanishing from the school.

Hokage Tower:

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the wisest and possibly the oldest recorded Kage, seamlessly walked into his private archives. Archives that were strictly for the Hokage's eyes only. And along in these archives, lay one of the most destructive scrolls that contained numerous kinjutsu, the scroll of seals.

Speaking of the scroll, Hiruzen decided to take a peek on the scroll, feeling good to himself, a smile crept upon his face today was peaceful Naruto didn't do anything , as he turned into a corner…

… Only to find that the scroll of seals was missing.

Stricken with panic, Sarutobi immediately ran towards the scene of the crime, his smug was wiped off of his face, as he angrily looked around and found a small note.

Picking it up, Sarutobi opened the small piece of paper and read

'_Don't look for me_

_-Naruto_

Sandaime couldn't exactly find the right words to say that day, so he just inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, screaming at the top of his voice.

"UZUMAKI NARUTO! ONCE I FIND YOU, YOU ARE SO DEAD!"

Konoha forests:

Naruto could feel the hairs on the back of his head were standing on end. Somehow, he had managed to piss someone off and that someone was involved with the government right now.

A sweatdrop appeared at the back of his head as he laughed nervously.

"Ehehe… Jiji must be blowing of a lid."

Oh, how right he was.

During his reading of the forbidden scroll, the village went into a panic, seeing as one of the most vital documents was stolen right under the Hokage's nose.

When Naruto unfurled the giant paper wrapping, he decidedly read and learned the first jutsu that he saw,

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu** (Shadow Replication Technique)

It was a forbidden jutsu that makes a solid replica of the user, it can be used for blitz tactics and infiltration purposes, another useful ability from it is its information gaining capabilities, what the clone remembers before being dispelled would immediately transfer back to the individual, gaining all of the memories of the clone. Ideal for information gathering missions.

A drawback of the jutsu would be its required chakra is half of the user's chakra capacity. Not to mention, a single hit to the clone would dispel it.

Meaning, a user of Kage Bunshin must also be a taijutsu expert for the clone to last much longer in battle. Naruto would have to fix that soon enough.

As he practiced the said technique, often having wonderful results with Kage Bunshin being combined with Sougetsu no Terasu (Illuminating Moon Phase), the blonde immediately noticed the setting sun, stopping a moment and then kneeled down closing the scroll of seals.

He then carried the scroll on his back, strapping it on firmly. He then heard footsteps, by his estimates, there were four people, but both were coming from different directions, Naruto immediately hid himself and masked his presence, viewing the two people that came to where he was earlier, it was already night, and the clothes that he wore were actually helping him blend with the darkness well. He had viewed the first to arrive as the instructor that he personally loathed, Mizuki and the other was a bewildered Iruka

"Mizuki! Have you seen Naruto? He's not in the usual places that he is when he's in the village!" Iruka asked with concern

Naruto remained silent letting the conversation continue but expected something from Mizuki to spout out

"I don't know Iruka, but if we need to find him fast! If the scroll gets into enemy hands, he could jeopardize the whole village!" Said Mizuki, Iruka, being the observant one, noticed the large shuriken on his back

"Why are you dressed like you're prepared for war, Mizuki? This is only Naruto we're talking about." Said Iruka but Mizuki begged to differ, he knew the brat more than Iruka did, after suffering four years from the brat that continuously harassed him with countless pranks that could put the whole academy in shambles, the said chuunin was having tears of joy when the day of the graduation exams.

"You never know Iruka" Was Mizuki's only answer and the said blonde immediately jumped down from the treetops, holding the scroll on his back with his right hand holding his right side, an emotionless face stared at the treacherous chuunin

"Mizuki_-sensei _I think this scroll belongs to you. Do you think I could pass now?" Was Naruto's question then a smirk crossed his lips.

Mizuki was taken aback by the blonde's statement, staggering for a moment until he finally gained his composure, grinning like an idiot.

"W-What are you talking about brat? Iruka, it's obvious he's trying to pull something, maybe an alibi, you know how conniving that child is!" Mizuki replied

Iruka's eyebrows were inching closer, showing a slightly suspicious look that he threw at Mizuki, he decided to give Naruto the benefit of the doubt to hear his side of the story

"Oh, what are you talking on about, Mizuki-sensei? Didn't you say that this was a make up exam? By undergoing a faux mission, stealing an S-class document from an S-class facility and then giving it to you, I could pass, and not just any S-class document either, you stated specifically that you wanted the Forbidden Scroll of Seals." Naruto smirked cracking his knuckles rather noisily and bending his neck, hearing a cracking noise as well, he then raised his right hand with just his elbow, allowing his chakra to convert to wind and circle it freely with his forearm, earning a howling sound, he activated Reppuken.

"Mizuki, is what Naruto said true?" Asked Iruka, his left hand inching closer to the kunai holster on his left leg

Not many did know of Iruka before he was an academy instructor. Before his introduction to the easier life of being an academy student, before his induction in the academy as a teacher, he was known as Garou (The Hungry Wolf) a member of the elite ANBU black ops, it was due to his accomplishments and a single jutsu that could make a Jounin shatter on the ground with fear.

Mizuki hadn't had any idea who he was facing but instead, tried to deny his involvement with the blonde and tried to keep his cool

"Heh, I guess it can't be helped sooner or later someone was bound to find out, I just didn't think it would have been sooner." Mizuki then grabbed the giant shuriken slung on his back and then threw it at the blonde who merely took a step forward, and then swung his right hand with the roaring Futon Jutsu

"Futon: Reppuken! (Wind Element: Violent Wind Fist)"

Unleashing the spinning wind energy in a good five meters, the said Jutsu disrupted the trajectory of the shuriken, swaying it sideways and tearing through it like paper the said wind jutsu then dissipated and Naruto immediately acted upon the dissipation by grabbing the Hiraishin Kunai.

He dashed towards Mizuki unleashing Hien and swung at the said man, who jumped away to another tree branch, to clear his footing. The said man paled at the blonde's sudden increase in ability

'_The brat's fast!' _Thought Mizuki as Naruto then vanished and reappeared to his side. The wind sword poised to swing at the said man's torso. Mizuki jumped back before he was cut like butter.

"Tch… I never thought of taking care of the demon child was this hard." Gritted his teeth

"Mizuki, you fool! Don't you dare say that!" Said Iruka, suddenly biting his left thumb and then spreading his blood on his right palm.

"No, Iruka-sensei let me handle him. Besides, I already know about the Kyuubi, if that guy thought that he could use the Kyuubi card to his advantage, he's wrong. Dead wrong." Said Naruto as anger had shown it's face on Naruto, his eyes began to unconsciously change, two streams of white light to each eye began to circulate, his pupils began dilating,

"Which you will be in a matter of seconds!" Said Mizuki grabbing a scroll and unfurling it, grabbing one of the seals, another giant shuriken appeared as he threw it at the blonde.

"Hmph, stupid." Naruto mumbled as he suddenly used a middle index cross seal

"You said that as a bonus, if I could do one jutsu in the scroll, you'd have no choice but to pass me. Indeed the prospect was too good to be true, you planned this from the beginning, there were multiple fail safe plans that you could have used, in the event of me learning a forbidden kinjutsu, there's a high possibility of a genin like me to die due to the backlash of the technique. If by some miracle I survived and mastered a jutsu, you would finish me off yourself, in the event of me being found by someone else other than you, you'd be forced to use a kill and run method with you grabbing the scroll." Naruto said as he then summoned enough chakra for his technique

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Shadow Clone Technique)" Naruto said and in a cloud of smoke, five similar clones appeared having the same stance as Naruto. The blonde then shoved the gigantic scroll on his back towards Iruka

"Mizuki, with your treachery, I will give you death!" Said Naruto and the five clones all jumped from the branch.

Mizuki was on alert, quickly grabbing a kunai from his holster, he jumped back yet again as a clone of the real one, appeared from below giving of a horizontal swipe to his ankles. The said man then landed on the tree branch with a second clone bursting through a tree trunk, giving of another horizontal slash, this time, Mizuki evaded by jumping up and was about to stab the clone, until he saw the clone that was in mid air along with him, Naruto's Wind sword, being overhead, indicating his vertical strike.

"Mikadzuki no Mai! (Dance of the Crescent Moon)" Naruto then swung the sword down

Mizuki, being unable to dodge in mid air, parried the blonde's blow by clashing it at the Kunai's base.

"Hah! Like you can take me on! Kyuubi kid!" Said Mizuki as he kicked Naruto in the stomach that vanished in a puff of smoke.

"What!?" The startled Mizuki was then hit to the stomach with the wind sword sticking from the smoke; it was Naruto who was hiding behind the smoke.

"Shit! You used your clones as a distraction!" Said the man who coughed up blood in his mouth. Naruto then stepped on the man's shoulders and jumped, gathering enough energy to his right index finger; he then closed his left eye and then aimed it at the said man.

Naruto carefully aimed his currently strongest jutsu at Mizuki who unleashed the power of the Ichuu no Kaze on the said man

Mizuki was blown back by the force of the jutsu blasting him to the ground at great speeds that created a smouldering crater at the bottom

Five Naruto's then appeared above the crater, with his wind sword held reversely while descending on the crater, in a stabbing position.

Mizuki having seen the clones immediately used the Kawarimi no Jutsu to switch himself with a log.

One of his clones immediately grabbed Naruto by the back of his overcoat and tossed him at Mizuki. The traitor then saw Naruto coming at him at a high velocity. Mizuki was then forced to grab his scroll from his pouch and fired multiple kunai that had exploding tags wrapped with them. The blonde then mindlessly dodged them like a graceful butterfly dodging the rain of death.

Naruto then again reappeared at Mizuki's side; the said Chuunin immediately reacted by hitting the base of the Hiraishin blade and Hien became possible to block out the unblockable sword.

"Sougetsu no Terasu: Tsukikage. (Illuminating Moon phase: Moonlight)" The said blonde then became nothing more than after image and suddenly appeared at Mizuki's right side, his sword already poised to swing.

'_I wo__n't make it in time!' _

The result was instantaneous, Mizuki managed to dodge but not before his shoulder being grazed by the ethereal sword.

Iruka watched with awe in his eyes as he observed Naruto all this time

'_He coordinates his attacks with Kage Bunshin, and used the smoke to block Mizuki's vision, Naruto then used Shizuka Aruku no Jutsu to creep up on him and deliver a good strike. Naruto, you're amazing! I've never seen this kind of coordinated attack pattern, not even from Uchiha Sasuke!' _

Naruto then raised his right hand that held the specially made Kunai, slowly but gracefully, he used a semicircle stance with the wind blade pointing downwards, slowly closing his eyes for concentration, Mizuki took advantage of the situation and dashed towards Naruto blindly.

As Mizuki got closer he could feel something was off about the blonde, he was unsure, but it seemed like he was being sucked into a vortex, Mizuki couldn't stop, his legs didn't allow him. As he was about within arm's reach of the boy, Mizuki rammed the kunai down…

Only to be split apart by the wind blade, the edge of the knife fell on the ground, it was cut in half. But it didn't end there; Mizuki looked down on the blonde whose eyes were now fully awakened

"Sougetsu no Terasu: Hantsuki no Noboru! (Illuminating Moon Phase: Rise of the Half moon)"

Naruto then delivered a reverse vertical slash. It managed to slice Mizuki's right shoulder off turning it into a lifeless stump with the said man staggering back and ultimately falling down on the ground in a heap.

"GUAH!" Mizuki yelled as he fell down, coughing up blood in the process, he refused to lose to a genin of Naruto's calibre! He can't allow it!

Mizuki was about to stand until his wounded abdomen was stepped on by Iruka

"That's enough… Traitor." Iruka mentioned, his eyes gleaming by the moonlight indicating his bloodlust, a glint of rage was entering the scar faced chuunin.

"Heh… I never thought of you as a sympathizer of the Kyuubi." Mizuki replied a smile escaped his bloody lips; Iruka merely applied more pressure on the poor man's stomach

"No. Like the rest of the village, I hated the Kyuubi with a passion; he killed my parents after all." Iruka's fists were clenched. Naruto merely look emotionless, he already knew that, it was human nature after all

"Then why are you…?"

"It's because Naruto is different, a jinchuuriki is different from a bijuu, a human is different from a demon, if it weren't for Naruto, the countless sacrifices, the sacrifices of the Yondaime, the sacrifices of my mother and father… Would have been in vain." Iruka said, Mizuki merely looked away from Iruka and then to Naruto who looked at him with cold eyes

"You people, who spat at Naruto, cursed him and depraved him of his innocence, you shamed the countless people that died that night, you spat at their honour. You made them look like fools in their graves. Naruto was the result of those countless sacrifices to protect the village. Yet you repay that debt with hate for Naruto. It is you who can't understand the pain that coursed through us!" Iruka then punched the ground Mizuki was on, his fists were already bleeding.

Just then, countless ANBU had drop down from the treetops, stopping Iruka with his speech

"Iruka-san, thank you for your cooperation in locating and finding the traitor. Mizuki has been under surveillance for the past few years and thanks to you and Naruto-san, we could finally convict and arrest this man." Said the one in the tiger mask

"Took you long enough." Naruto mentioned rolling his eyes

Some of the members chuckled while others muttered _'cheeky brat'_

"Oh that's right Naruto-san… Sandaime-sama requests for your presence in the office immediately after this." Said one of the members that sent chills down on Naruto's spine while the others were keeping their laughter to a minimum

Naruto just palmed his forehead, regretting not fully delving on with his plan.

"Damn it… I just hope I don't hear the end of this by tomorrow." Naruto mentioned as both him and Iruka made their way to the office. The glow of the full moon, still present in the back

To Be Continued…

Jutsu Section:

Shizuka Aruku no Jutsu (Silent Steps technique): A Rank- A technique that is purely stealth based, it is a difficult technique to master because of it not requiring chakra to cushion the feet and prevent strong vibrations to occur on the ground giving off sound. It is a move only perfected through practice and experience, commonly a test to initiate aspiring ANBU and Hunter Nin applicants as it is a must in performing delicate missions such as infiltration, sabotage and high profile assassinations.

Futon: Reppuken (Wind Release: Violent Gale Fist): C Rank- An offensive, wind based jutsu that picks up strength the longer it is held. It has the ability to deliver high pressure cuts from the winds and pushing force that is enough to disorient team strategies of enemies.

Futon: Ichuu no Kaze (Wind Release: Point of Winds) B Rank- Offensive jutsu that is gathered at a single point. Creating a huge potential energy at the said point, the more it is held, the more powerful it is, the drawback of this jutsu is the recoil that could send anyone flying back once fired.

Sougetsu no Terasu: Tsukikage (Illuminating Moon Phase: Moonlight) C Rank- A sword technique that could fool an enemy by applying chakra on the blade, the blade would then act as a reflection of the person that can destroy a person's defences in a instant

Sougetsu no Terasu: Mikadzuki no Mai (Illuminating Moon Phase: Dance of the Crescent Moon) C Rank- A simpler form of Tsukikage, this time, this fools the opponent in attacking the two illusions that are on both his sides, while the real one strikes above

Sougetsu no Terasu: Hantsuki no Noboru (Illuminating Moon Phase: Rise of the Half Moon) B-rank A jutsu that is brilliant in countering, it leaves no openings for attackers to intervene, with this move, when the user reaches the bottom of the semicircle kata, the counterattack would be a reverse slash upwards in an incredible speed and an almost unblockable attack.

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Replication Technique)- B rank, Jounin level technique, that replicates the user with solid clones, these clones are known for their information gathering skills as once they are dispelled, all knowledge and information would immediately travel back to the user, a drawback of the jutsu would be the even split of the chakra when used.

Chapter Preview:

The life of a shinobi is the life within death; one crosses path with death more often times than not, bloodshed is inevitable. As Naruto pursues his goals, he learns to obey and disobey

Chapter Seven: The Right Decision

Well, this is chapter six! Damn, having writer's block is such a pain in the ass, not only that but I never thought that a pre-med graduating student would have so much problem with school work!

Anyways, twenty pages? Oh crap, a new record!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter seven: The Right Decision

* * *

It took a few minutes for the Sandaime to stop pacing from one side of his desk to the other…

In front of Naruto.

Sarutobi had a frown on his face, what is he supposed to do with this child? He seemed so carefree of the people after his head. If he could just tell Naruto the position he was in, he would take this action seriously!

"Oi jiji, you look like one of those men by the hospital near this really big door with a look that screams, 'Oh Shit!'" Said the blonde making a face that resembled the men that stood outside the delivery room waiting for what the 'stork' brought.

Sarutobi sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and shook his head

"You are a lucky fool, Naruto. Good thing this whole incident was already monitored by the ANBU, if we didn't, then I'm sure it would've been disastrous for your part."

Naruto stood straight and frowned, where is the professor leading him?

"It's time you look at the situation carefully Naruto, if we didn't monitor Mizuki earlier on, the council would have found a way to get through to you." Sarutobi said, sitting down on his chair, his hands clasped together and his elbows were placed on the table.

"Are those bastards trying to get rid of me?" Naruto asked, curious about the motives of the council

"Even worse, they want you detained, controlled for their own schemes, their little 'weapon'. As the predecessor of the Yondaime, I vowed to his grave that you be considered as a human, not a sacrifice. Words cannot explain why I didn't find it surprising once news came out that you were the jailor." Said the wise old man

"Tell me old man, how much power does the council hold right now?" Asked Naruto clenching his fists as his anger was rising, how dare they treat him like this!

"Not as much, the council are merely advisors in political and administrative decisions, they help the Hokage decide on what is best. However…" Sarutobi turned around, a new crystal ball in hand and applied chakra to it there, the blonde saw the image of a man, wrapped in bandages on the forehead and his right eye, seemed as old as Sarutobi and an x car on his chin.

"There are people like this man, Danzo, who have unique ties for under the table operations." Sarutobi said, the blonde looked at the glass intently

"Danzo, once my rival for the seat of Hokage, rules the black ops of the ANBU corps, Ne (Root). All who are under him are in his direct command, they do not disobey orders, they merely carry out on what was given to them. They are machines Naruto, all under this power hungry man that attempts to usurp the present leader, me." Sarutobi mentioned, and letting go of the crystal ball on the dek

"Couldn't we just take care of it?" Asked the blonde

"Naruto, they may be members of Ne but they are still part of Konoha, majority of the ANBU black ops are members of Root, personally handled by Danzo. For years I've tried to abolish this but it always ended in failure. That and I just can't see what will happen to the members of the black ops if their leader is dead, I fear that everyday, as Danzo grows ever older, the members would eventually cause a massive disorganization of the corps that it will lead to chaos." Said the Sandaime

"I may have a lot of power within my reach, but I cannot control everything, especially civilian matters. That is left upon the civilian court in the capital." Sarutobi then grabbed his pipe and began to smoke the nicotine.

"I've realized too, that political matters issued by the council are not always solved properly, they may be thorough but they could never get things done with their incessant bickering and prattling." The Sandaime then clutched his fists, shaking in annoyance

Naruto meanwhile felt his anger slowly subside, he would not draw blood now, at least not yet.

"You now realize, Naruto that we just can't act without reason. If we were to do this, we must be quick, silent and full of conviction. A small mistake and we could be swimming in our own pool of blood. The people we are up against are very influential, they can double deal anytime and their hands would not be dirty, they're conniving and shrewd. If we want to take them down, we need to take them down one by one we need to slowly replace them, cause anarchy inside the council and ultimately abolish the system entirely. I have already carved out the different targets to get rid off. All I need is the perfect shinobi to do this." Sarutobi mentioned, holding a scroll from his pocket, looking around so as to not raise suspicions,

The blonde steeled his own resolve, about to grab the scroll but Sarutobi raised his other hand

"No this mission is too dangerous even for you; it would take years for this to complete, and even more years to change the leadership in ROOT. And another set of years for you to be strong enough. In my eyes Naruto, this mission would only result in a disastrous failure if you are to do this earlier than you are expected, you may be stronger than a normal genin, but your mind still is one, unless you mature more and grow stronger, I might change my mind, this mission would be of upmost importance I want to secure the future of this village, and entrusting it to the children of this village."

Naruto then said to Sarutobi

"Then leave it to me! I can do it! I can fight them and I'll win, I'll be able to…"

"Naruto, there's a thin line that separates idiocy and valour. Don't forget that." Sarutobi interrupted. Naruto stood up and said

"I can do it old man! I want to change this village for the better, if I could just…"

"Naruto, if you took this mission now, you'll die, and that is final, my answer is no, I'll tell you when you're ready." Sarutobi remained stern to his decision. Naruto was now fuming

"Then let me get stronger, teach me how to be strong!" Said Naruto, slamming his hand on the table

The Hokage merely closed his eyes and said to Naruto sagely,

"Strength is obtained only but through purpose and value. Tell me Naruto, have you found your reason why you wish to fight?"

"Recognition." Was his simple reply, but Sarutobi paid no heed

"Then that is shallow, I will give you this mission once you manage to find out how to truly obtain strength." Sarutobi dismissed him, Naruto went outside a frown evident on his face

"Naruto, although I'm dismissing you it doesn't mean I don't have any form of punishment right now. Your little frolicking should serve as your lesson." A glint of mischievousness crossed Sarutobi's eyes

Naruto paled at that thought while muttering something

"_Oh Shit!"_

One hour later:

"Oh God! I think my nose is starting to fall off!"

Naruto was cleaning the bathrooms of the academy notorious for their not so smell friendly atmosphere, staggering out of the said bathroom the blonde gripped the mop he held tightly holding it for dear life for support.

"Now I know why Kiba always puked when he was near one of these sewer holes."

The blonde then dizzily ran outside stumbling on a bucket full of water drenching him wet.

"Damn Capital punishments…" Was all he could mutter as he stood up and slouching on his way home.

The next day:

Team assignments

No matter how anyone puts them into words, teams were always unbalanced at the start of shinobi careers. Genin teams often consisted of specialists per team, such as reconnaissance or spying and infiltration.

That's why it took longer for instructors and superiors to decide in which genin hopefuls go with which.

Iruka sighed trying his best to come up with the most balanced team, anyway he looked at it, Naruto, Shikamaru and Hinata was definitely out. That would be the most unbalanced team ever!

Naruto was an infiltration expert, he was best when he's in the middle of the field, someone who could fight on the inside. He's also a clever on the spot tactician, something a pace that Shikamaru can't follow, and most likely disagree with Naruto's battle plans that are always considered tricky and incredibly risky.

Underhanded tricks and sneak attacks are what make Naruto such a wild card; he's very formidable in outsmarting his opponent just by crafty use of jutsu.

He was unorthodox making him such a difficult partner for Hinata that things could get unnaturally difficult to coordinate.

But that didn't mean that the team has all flaws, on the contrary, this would be the most broken team that any combination with the Rookie Nine as of now

Shikamaru was a strategist at heart and even though there could be disagreements with Naruto on how things should work, both of them are willing to share their thoughts and come up with a better plan.

Naruto could serve as flank to Hinata during Recon missions that involved spying, Shikamaru's easy go lucky behaviour would simply have no effect on Hinata. But rather appreciate, he would mildly criticize anything wrong and Hinata would gladly appreciate and will do it better

Hinata could possibly help Naruto in infiltration, she can scan out the area with her Byakugan while she guides Naruto with a wireless headphone around a heavily guarded complex.

Iruka thought the ridiculous strength that the team had they could even beat the team the supposed rookie of the year will be at. With Naruto in the picture, the shift in teams was so disastrous he needed to ultimately renew the arrangements.

Especially after he had witnessed Naruto's skills perfectly.

Iruka sighed, holding the pencil on his upper lip and leaning back on his bed thinking hard.

Such execution of a battle like that proved Naruto's abilities were far from a fresh graduate. He had tactics that could fool Chuunin, trick plays that turn the tide of the battle in a flash and jutsus that were near to Jounin or Jounin in level.

Maybe he would work better in a controlled environment? No, having Naruto work with Shino would mean both of them would not exert the potential of the two to come out. Shino would be far too strict on Naruto's balls to the wall attitude and the blonde would most likely rebel. The two would hold each back as both Naruto and Shino would not be able to do their magic well enough.

So that meant crossing Kiba out of Team Eight out of the picture, pitting him with Shino and Hinata. Kiba may be wily, but he's willing to sit down for a moment. More than ever, he had a sense of competitiveness against Naruto, making it hard for the both of them to work together.

So that meant that Shikamaru would be put back to the original Ino-Shika-Chou trio. And that left Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura.

Iruka frowned at this line up. The three would never get along, Naruto has an unknown amount of tension with the Uchiha, who continuously requests for a fight against the Uzumaki. Sakura simply disliked Naruto. With these three, there was no team dynamics, period.

Sasuke is a complete loner, often doing things by himself; he would think others of his age as below him. Something Naruto often scowled at. To Naruto, Sasuke's attitude was attributed by the noble upraising that Sasuke experienced and the night of the massacre.

Sakura, was someone that would consider Sasuke's well being first rather than the team's needs. Naruto may be someone who could try and at least tolerate the girl but even he could break a gasket and assault her just for being an annoying fan girl.

But then again, all three worked best in a volatile environment, Sasuke already experienced this; Naruto's was witnessed by Iruka first hand, and Iruka noted Sakura's were showing signs of working better in pressure.

"Iruka, it's me, Anko, I'm here to give you something!" Said the voice from the door, being hospitalized doesn't mean you're safe from danger. The voice sounded cheery even for Anko's voice

"_Crap!"_

Iruka then covered the bed sheet throughout himself serving as a makeshift barrier.

'_Please don't let Anko have any weird ideas like going to the hospital wearing a slutty nurse's outfit and an enema set with her!'_

Iruka peered from his bed sheet and true enough, Anko entered but sighed in relief with Anko entering with her same old outfit, at least it was better than his damn kinky paranoia…

Training grounds:

'**Doujutsu can be accessed in two methods, kit. First is through how the Uchiha access theirs. By sudden gush of adrenalin being pumped inside of you. ****But the downside of this is that not everyone in the family holds this kind of limit. Then there's activation through handseals, like how people of the Hyuuga usually do. The traits surely pass on to the next generation but the problem is the access of the seals, even the most basic of the seal, the ram, would become a problem in accessing the doujutsu since the flow would need to be manipulated the keirakukei (chakra pathways) are not used to the flow, they need to be directed through seals. A wrong seal could damage the nerves in your eyes and could leave you blind.'**

Naruto gulped, his eyes still closed and meditating

'_But when I fought __Mizuki I felt something within my eyes, does that mean that it's the first type of doujutsu?'_

'**Correct, since the sequence was recently completed, it should awaken anytime you want now.'**

'_It means I can use it freely now, right?'_

'**Correct yet again try it out but let me warn you again of the side-effects…'**

'_Two minutes, I know'_

Naruto focused chakra to his eyes, letting the flow move on its own, slowly opening his eyes, he could still see as he was back then but then, the sudden itch in his eyes forced him to slightly run around, slowly, he began to notice the swaying of the trees going at a slower pace, he forced his body yet again, this time going faster, and he could literally see the vision of the whole area, slowing down and almost grinding to a halt he could then feel the naturally oncoming suggestions of the doujutsu, it flowed to every nerve in his body, to his brain and back to his body again. It felt exhilarating at the same time as calming. He grabbed a shuriken from his holster and aimed at a tree stump, at least blocked by five trees.

Once he fired one, he quickly grabbed another set of shuriken, flinging it faster than the first, hitting it and changing directions, the trajectory of the shuriken changed, as it danced around the forestry and finally hitting the target in sight.

'_It helps me hit the shuriken at the most miniscule detail, __hitting the target… This is… Impressive, much like the Sharingan…'_

Naruto smiled, and gazing the perfect hit and then thought of a new name for his new doujutsu. It might not have the perfect clairvoyance of the Sharingan or the three sixty degree view of the Byakugan, it allowed him to slow down the perception of time of those around him, so should he call it, Toki no Me (Eyes of Time)? No, it held no control over time rather the perception within his vision. So he began to think of several names. He could accurately predict an attack by the most miniscule calculations.

He grinned, compared to the pinwheel eye, he could come up with a counter faster than flashing a seal.

"Shin Yogen no Me (Eyes of Death Prediction)"

He mentioned, a proper name for a doujutsu that could accurately input countless scenarios into his head and choosing the best one to do. To perform a proper counter, though it could not copy jutsu, theoretically, the said eye could counter any jutsu.

Hokage Tower:

"This is Iruka's ideal team arrangements?" Asked the Hokage looking at the folder and its contents all the while, Anko was giving of a grin from ear to ear

"You look like you had a good time in the hospital Anko, anything you'd like to share?" Asked the old man, Anko merely shrugged and answered

"I just visited Iruka and talked about the old times." Was her simple reply

Sarutobi had his eyebrows raised, suspicion lingering within him but decided not to pry any further.

A person's sex life shouldn't be asked not unless it were men that talked about it.

"Fine, bring me all the plausible Jounin instructors."

Anko bowed and headed out the doorway and started hauling er, called all applicable Jounin Instructors for this year.

A few minutes later:

All available Jounin were comfortably sitting in front of the Hokage each were debriefed of this years graduate.

"If I may, Hokage-sama?" Asked Kakashi, Sarutobi nodded gesturing for Kakashi to speak

"With the inclusion of Naruto everyone here has become baffled, just how did Naruto pass?" Asked Kakashi eyes still on his beloved porn book

"Yeah, though I never thought he'd fail the genin exam, especially with his personality." Said one Sarutobi Asuma, as he scratched the back of his head with one eyebrow raised

"Well, I specifically ordered him." Said the Sandaime, now for the cover…

"You ordered him to fail? May I ask why?" Kurenai mentioned, her head tilting on her right side supported by one finger

"He knew Mizuki had a different motif when he was in the exams. Naruto reported that Mizuki told him he could pass with a make up exam." Sarutobi mentioned

"And Naruto knew that there was no such thing as a make up test in the genin exams, not that he knew but assumed." Said Kakashi, flipping through another page

"Correct, he_ assumed _that Mizuki was after something, specifically the Forbidden Scroll of Seals that he reported." Sarutobi reported the Jounin inside the room were shocked

"When he reported me this, he asked that we play along and let him handle the situation. He said that for what the traitorous son of a bitch did to him, he would pay back a thousand fold." Sarutobi let a small smile creep upon his face as he closed his eyes, a great cover up

"Well that would explain why Naruto stole the forbidden scroll last night." Said Asuma

"Quite, but let's not discuss this any further, let us now conduct the evaluation of the proposed teams and tell me if you need to change any of the arrangements." The Hokage then opened the folder

"Let's begin first with the most prolific teams, let's start with Team Seven, the one who will lead this team is…" Hiruzen let his voice trail off as the one eyed Jounin in the room raised his hand

"I believe that would be me, Hokage-sama." Kakashi simply stated and as he stood up

"And under his supervision would be, Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke."

Everyone flinched in the room, Kakashi yet again, the first to be called, meaning he'll likely be the first one to fail the new graduates.

"Any remarks?" Hiruzen asked the Jounin

"Yes, I don't think that any of them would be willing to cooperate with one another, especially Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura they would be too fixed on their own goals."

Sarutobi Hiruzen raised an eyebrow, looking at the Jounin with a curious gaze

"And what makes you say that Kakashi?"

"Uchiha Sasuke as you know does not wish to cooperate with people that is I quote, 'Below his level'. He's too overconfident of himself, all team dynamics would have blown up from there. The same goes for Haruno Sakura, she's bright but in combat and others, she is practically useless, she's too focused on Sasuke than seeing the bigger picture. Then there's Uzumaki Naruto, he's willing to cooperate, but I don't see him going as much as to motivate his team to cooperate with him, he and Sasuke would likely compete for the dominance on who should be team leader." Kakashi said and Sarutobi mildly chuckled, the student of the fourth was dead on.

"So, what are your remarks?" Asked the wise old leader

"They're an interesting bunch, a hot headed blonde, a hot headed pinky and a hot headed Uchiha, over all, a team that relatively has no team dynamics but has overwhelming potential, I'll take them." Said Kakashi as he closed his folder while the others were staring at him with an incredulous look. Kakashi looked around and saw the ten Jounin staring at him

"What's everyone looking at me for?"

Who was he kidding?

Team assignments:

Barely fifteen minutes had passed and already, the classroom was already littered with ninja hopefuls. Naruto entered the class, curious and eager for his team assignments, as he approached the upper stands, Inuzuka Kiba quickly scrutinized the blonde.

"Oi, Naruto! This place is for graduates only!"

The feral boy smirked, a cocky grin escaped his lips. That is, until Naruto emphasized the forehead protector by pointing it on his neck, a long blue cloth dangling on the back of the blonde.

Naruto had his eyebrow raised and asked Kiba

"What, are you bli- Oh, I'm sorry, that must've offended you. You don't use your eyes to assess people, you use your nose to smell the liquid dripping of their crotches." The blonde sarcastically replied earning a few stifling giggles as a reaction

"Hey! That's strictly offensive!" Kiba angrily replied, earning a middle finger salute from the blonde

"Bite me!" Was Naruto's comeback

Kiba was about to jump at the smirking blonde who was secretly preparing Reppuken, that is until, two figures literally jumped from the door

"I won! I was here first blondie!" Replied a clearly irritated pink haired Sakura

"No way, billboard brow, I was here first!" Replied the equally hot headed Ino

"Pinkie!"

"Pig!"

"Tch… Bunch of troublesome women, how their fathers put up with them, I'll never know." Came a bored comment, Shikamaru was sitting at the top, his left hand cradling his cheek watching the quarrel below like how paint dried.

Naruto just shrugged and continued to look for a seat, finding one beside his friend, Hinata, he quickly sat down and waited for the instructor to come and tell the teams, the room was getting stuffy and the constant ramblings of the Sasuke fan club was not making it better

Naruto's head was starting to ache. A small tick began to pop from Naruto's head as he used a position similar to Shikamaru's except his looked more of an annoyance and not of boredom

Both said boys comically sighed at the same time, Hinata had to stifle a laughter.

In the midst of the bickering of the two below, one Uchiha Sasuke slipped by their guard and sat just in front of Naruto, who only looked as bored as the guy that was sitting in the back.

Ino and Sakura looked at the place were Sasuke sat, all sides of the Uchiha were taken, Ino proposed a sigh of defeat while the pinkette clearly would not give up. Seeing as Naruto, supposed deadlast was sitting behind the Uchiha, Sakura felt a boost in herself as she found out that she was the second best in the academy.

Naruto wondered why Sakura was standing next to him and was staring at him with some form of intent in her eyes, his bored expression not wavering from Sakura's malicious aura

"Naruto, get out of my seat now!" Said Sakura, Naruto just looked at him with a bored expression and ignored her.

"Get out now!" Said Sakura delivering a wicked straight punch to the blonde who's hand slipped from his cheeks, effectively evading Sakura's insane punch.

One moment later, Sakura saw that Naruto was asleep on the table whilst talking to himself

"No Ayame, don't put soy sauce on my ramen… Please…"

Naruto muttered, in his sleep, Hinata giggled at the blonde's antics.

"HE WAS SLEEPING!?" Sakura literally screamed, she was about to deliver some smiting upon the devil that dared to ignore her, until an all bandaged up Iruka entered the room holding a folder

Observing the class, Iruka waited patiently for his class to quiet down…

But was short lived when most of the students were still ignoring the teacher in front of them.

So with all the dignity that Iruka wanted to preserve, he used the only technique that made all the academy students cringe in fear…

'_Big head no Jutsu!'_

"SILENCE YOU BUNCH OF LOUSY BRATS!"

Everyone stared at him as if they were to be run over by a speeding carriage.

Iruka cleared his throat and began reading the folder in his hands

"Okay, now that I have your attention, wake up Shikamaru."

Said boy, blearily raised his head, drool visible from his mouth

"As I was saying, Naruto, if you put that on Sasuke's head at this very moment, you'd have to do the bathroom duty again."

Naruto quickly retracted the container from his mouth as he whistled innocently, hiding the all purpose adhesive glue jar on his back; all the while ignoring the hateful glares coming from the Uchiha and his fan girls.

Iruka raised an eyebrow and continued

"As I was saying, with the conclusion of the exam yesterday, the ones that are now in this very room, are to be considered ninjas of Konoha." Iruka said and everyone nodded in affirmation

"So with this, I wish you all a prosperous endeavour to this career, and to learn to become an excellent shinobi of Konoha, one must learn the values of being a teammate and a valuable member of the family that Konoha believes in." Iruka mentioned, Sasuke squinted his eyes and scowled, he did not like where this was going.

"So with that in mind, I want you all to cooperate well with your teammates, I'm here to announce to you on what team you will be in, who are your teammates and who will be the ones to guide you in the genin years." Iruka mentioned, Sasuke then snapped his head to the blonde sitting behind him, he did NOT want to be partnered up with some nutcase that was completely bent on making people suffer.

That was his job, damnit!

Naruto meanwhile, was not listening intently on his teacher for a moment, his mind was that of thinking of something amusing to find for a moment, that is, until his train of thought shattered when he heard his name

"… Seven"

"Uzumaki Naruto" Naruto tilted his head towards the teacher, eager to expect his teammates

"Haruno Sakura"

'_NOOOOOOO!' _Naruto thought, his mind was screaming death wails and cried inwardly to himself

"Uchiha Sasuke" With that, Naruto immediately remarked with a click of his tongue

"What is your problem!?" Asked the hot headed pinkette, looking at the blonde in annoyance pointing an accusing finger at him

"Just that I got teamed up with a useless person. " Said the blonde disdainfully earning an angry look from Sakura

"No doubt." Was what the Uchiha had to say giving a slight nod

Sakura had an urge to punch Naruto right in the face and rip that obnoxious smirk of his.

Iruka just sweatdropped and moved on, he knew it was going to happen, but then he had no other choice

"Okay, Team Seven's instructor will be, Hatake Kakashi." Iruka said, while the three remained, somewhat ignoring each other.

None of them were vocal about their refusal to be teammates, it was already obvious anyway.

"Team Eight would be, Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata and Inuzuka Kiba."

Shino merely nodded, it is best for him to take this without complaints, a true shinobi learns how to adapt and he knows it best than anyone here.

Hinata was crestfallen however, since she wasn't in Naruto's team but a bit happy when one of her friends were in it, at least Shino was there unlike Naruto who had the most terrible luck with the teams, that meant Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino would likely be partners

Kiba had let out a sigh of relief… No harpies on his team! No sirrie! Now if only he could get that Hyuuga chick without so much as a problem from that blonde hell raiser that was sitting beside her…

"Your instructor will be Yuuhi Kurenai." Iruka mentioned and Kiba had to whistle to this one, he had heard stories from his sister of one Yuuhi Kurenai and Hana seemed to admire her beauty given that she was even a shinobi

Ino had to roll her eyes… Typical of a horn dog

Meanwhile, Naruto merely gave of a simple chuckle and slightly teased the Inuzuka

"I see that dog boy here can't keep his hormones checked."

All of the girls in the room had to agree and some of the guys chuckled… Kiba just replied

"Hey! It's just natural to have an attraction to a pretty lady!"

Sakura had to retort on this one with her eyes rolling as well, "You mean a piece of meat."

Kiba angrily replied, slipping past his tongue

"At least she's not hard as a desk, flat chest!"

EVERY male winced at what was heard next. Kiba's blood curdling scream drove all the boys in the room pale including Iruka.

"Ouch." One boy said

"His mouth could cost him his children." Said the Uchiha and every boy in the room nodded sagely with understanding. The Uchiha made a note to himself since Sakura was going to be his teammate, never piss her off… Ever. It didn't matter if he was the better ninja, one hit from THAT part and it's goodbye dream of little Uchihas running around the complex with smiles on their cute little faces.

Naruto meanwhile, silently laughed at the situation. He just LOVED making other people suffer for his amusement.

"Okay, enough with the jokes, moving on… Team Nine is still active so that leaves team ten, which will be, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino and Akimichi Chouji."

The three nodded and Iruka added, "Your instructor would be, Sarutobi Asuma."

After that little fiasco, Iruka exited the room, hoping for more than a bottle of Sake, he just wanted to forget the WHOLE damn week.

Slowly one by one, the instructors came and checked their students out, most of them were… Eccentric…

The Kurenai woman however, reminded Naruto of the woman that kicked Asuma's ass the day he learned Hien, and Asuma himself who appeared closely behind, uncaring for the no smoking rule inside the school.

And now, all that was left was Team Seven… Seconds turned to minutes, minutes turned to hours,

The three members began to grow irritated at the display of the instructors tardiness, that is, except for Naruto.

"Just how long is he going to keep us waiting!?" Sakura yelled, obviously impatient, Naruto had his feet resting on the table with his hands at the back of his head. He was relaxing and not minding it at all

"And how could you be so relaxed at this kind of situation!?" Asked Sakura, Naruto merely raised one eyebrow and laughed as he said

"If I heard it correctly, the person we're waiting for, is Hatake Kakashi right?" Asked Naruto and Sakura, annoyed, replied rather forcefully

"Yes, Naruto, he is."

"Then there's nothing to worry about, in the shinobi community, he is said to arrive at mission debriefings two hours late." Said Naruto as he leaned back even further.

"And just, where did you get this kind of info?" Sasuke finally asked

"When you get the chance to eavesdrop on some of the shinobi here, you'll notice it. Besides, it's not like he'll ever be on time, just wait patiently like I do." Said Naruto

And true to his word, two hours later, a man that had a mask and his left eye covered with the slouched Forehead protector came in. The man was tall but had a lazy stature, his visible eye said it all, the man resembled a scarecrow.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura angrily pointed her finger at the Jounin

"Ah, sorry about that, you see, there was this black cat that crossed my path, and me being an auspicious man, decided to take the LONG way to the academy." Said Kakashi and everyone's jaw hit the floor inside the room except Kakashi

Sasuke turned his head to the carefree blonde and said,

"Are lame excuses a part of his personality too?" Asked Sasuke

Naruto shrugged, "I've heard they were outlandish and downright unbelievable but never of this level."

Kakashi looked at the team that stood before him and simply said, "My first impression of you people is…"

"I hate you."

All of the children looked at him with a sweat drop on the back of their heads

"Meet me on the roof in ten minutes." Said the Jounin vanishing in a cloud of smoke.

Rooftop:

The three members all stared at their teacher who was chuckling quite pleasantly as he read his book

"Tee hee…"

Sakura had a vein throbbing on her forehead, as the Jounin became oblivious to their arrival while Naruto and Sasuke sighed in exasperation

"Sensei, we're here." Said Naruto a palm on his forehead.

"Ah! Sorry about that, anyway, since you're here, I'd like to pass out some introductions." Said Kakashi

All three had to raise an eyebrow

"Huh?" All three asked in unison

"You know… Likes, dislikes… That kind of stuff."

"Why don't you start first, sensei?" Asked Sakura

"Fine, my name is Hatake Kakashi, my likes and dislikes are none of your concern, as for dreams for the future… Well, I have some hobbies…"

Sakura's jaw dropped at that statement. Meanwhile Sasuke and Naruto shook their heads.

"Okay, your turn, blondie." Kakashi pointed to the blonde member

"My name's Uzumaki Naruto, my likes are typically training and ramen, my dislikes are my tenant's way of training and waiting for three minutes for my ramen to be cooked! Goddamn it! And they call it _instant _ramen!? What the hell!?" Naruto began to rant that is, until Kakashi interrupted

"Yes Naruto, thank you for your ramblings, next, would be you, pinkie."

"My name is Haruno Sakura, my likes are…" She stares snidely to Sasuke that doesn't go unnoticed by the three

"My dreams for the future are…" She then stares at Sasuke again and this time, she squeals, Sasuke had a sweat drop on the back of his head

"And I hate, Naruto and Ino-pig!" Said Sakura glaring daggers at the apathetic blonde who was cleaning his ears with his pinkie. He then blew the lint away, showing his ignorance of Sakura's statements

Sakura had for a third time, had he jaw dropped on the ground as the blonde looked at them when everyone was looking at him

"What? I know you all love me, just don't give me that creepy stare." Said the blonde going for a shooing gesture to the people in front of him

'_He has issues…' _

Kakashi thought and muttering fangirl to the only female of his little team. He then looked at the last of his team, the one with the raven hair that looked like a duck's ass

"Okay, your turn, duck ass."

At this, Naruto laughed hard, as he sprawled on the floor and laughed at the Uchiha who had a tick on his forehead

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke…"

"Duck ass!" Naruto interrupted laughing again

"I have no likes and have a lot of dislikes…"

"Duck ass!" Naruto interrupted again, this time, Sasuke was trembling in annoyance

"And my dream… No ambition is…"

"To be a duck ass!" Naruto this time couldn't help it, he laughed on the floor again

"Is to kill two certain people, one later the other one RIGHT AT THIS VERY MOMENT! And restore my clan." This time, Sasuke clenched his fists and cracked as he looked at the blonde with malice in his eyes

He was about to approach Naruto until Kakashi interrupted

"Okay, now that you're acquainted, let's meet at training ground seven for a survival test tomorrow." Said Kakashi standing up, Sakura had to wonder

"But sensei, didn't we do this back in the academy years?"

At this, Naruto had to wonder as he frowned when Kakashi mentioned something about a test

"Let me guess, to pluck the chicks from the eggs?" Naruto mentioned metaphorically

"To put it metaphorically, yes, it is to find out who among the current graduates are the elite of the elite. The test has a sixty-six percent failing rate, so better be prepared tomorrow at six am!" Kakashi said and then added

"Oh, and better not each lunch, you'll throw up."

With that, Kakashi vanished in a plum of smoke. Leaving the three genin to contemplate their exam for tomorrow.

The next day:

Naruto yawned in the early morning sunlight, approaching the training grounds at exactly six in the morning, he knew Kakashi was going to be late, so he decided to eat a hearty breakfast and warm up before the exam.

Seeing his teammates at the foot of the tree, with Sakura sitting and Sasuke resting his back against the object, Naruto had to ask them

"What are you guys doing here? Aren't you a little early?"

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura screamed Naruto had to sweat drop

"What? Did you forget what I told you yesterday about Kakashi and his habits?"

This stopped Sakura dead in her tracks as she saw Naruto began to perform handseals and then collected chakra with his right arm, while being cradled with his left

Sasuke had a small squint of his eyes, this was something he HAD to see.

Sakura merely looked in awe as winds began to circulate on his right arm, it began to form and continuously grow gentle at first then became surging with energy the next. It rippled the black overcoat that the blonde wore, and started moving in Sakura and Sasuke's position

"Fuuton: Reppuken!" Naruto then cocked his arm back and in a punching motion, let go of the howling winds that tore through an unsuspecting bark that was turned to splinters

"Wow…" Sakura admired while Sasuke merely stared intently at the blonde

"What are you doing?" Was his question to Naruto as on cue, he replied,

"Just some warm ups…"

Naruto then proceeded to the countless stances with his Hiraishin Kunai, something Sasuke and Sakura were curious of. The kunai that Naruto wielded was weird; it was a three pronged Kunai, a slightly longer handle than usual and five Kanji Characters written on the handle from top to bottom.

He started of slow with a semi circle motion of the small knife in his right hand, but once he reached the bottom, he flicked his wrist and swung his sword in a blur, something Sasuke ALMOST couldn't see…

The handling of the technique was subtle but was quick, Sasuke could see it vaguely, Naruto's chakra was latent at first, like a small stream calmly flowing from the centre as it circled around Naruto, and then violently exploding when he flicked the sword upwards, he did not know how Naruto did that, but a simple technique like that would not be enough. Besides, with that kind of technique was that? It clearly relied on range, possibly close, but at THAT kind of range, it was near impossible to hit an enemy. It was better to deliver an uppercut, at least with that, you can actually change the angle of ascent to his the target somewhere in the body.

Naruto then went to another myriad of techniques all of which, Sasuke intended to follow but could never have found any use for it. He shook his head, the blonde was all in a sense, impractical, the jutsu that the blonde used was nothing more but useless without the proper tool. Yet, it wondered Sasuke why Naruto could be doing things that obviously have no meaning? Is there something that he's missing? Sure enough, two hours came by, with Naruto resting after an hour and a half, and Kakashi appeared in a plum of smoke.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura exclaimed for the third time

"You know Sakura, as much as where this is going, it's getting old and that guy would not learn from his mistakes, he's too damn lazy to do so." Said Naruto pointing to Kakashi

"Hey, I'll have you know I have my own sense of diligence and hard work from time to time." Kakashi defended

"What kind of diligence? The one where you stack your porn books like a pyramid?" Asked Sasuke

"How'd you… Never mind, let's just get this over with…" Kakashi said grabbing two bells from his left pocket

With a jingle of the bells, the scarecrow Jounin said to his students

"This is the test, there are two bells, within my hands, the ones who get the bells will become genin." Said Kakashi to this, Sakura asked

"But sensei, there are only two bells…"

Kakashi smiled inside his mask, here would be where he messes with the minds of his students

"Ah, that's the twist the one who doesn't get a bell, fails, goes back to the academy but not before being tied to a post and watch me eat lunch in front of them." Said Kakashi

'_That's why he said not to eat! The bastard!' _Inner Sakura mentioned infuriated with Kakashi

Meanwhile, Naruto smirked, good thing he disobeyed his teacher

"Well, without further ado… Let's begin the test!"

With that statement, everyone in Kakashi's line of sight disappeared in a blur

The Jounin smirked inside his well kept mask. Everyone of them were very well hidden. He then grabbed something from his pouch and everyone watched intently, Kakashi seemed to be planning on something…

… Or so everyone thought until the said masked Jounin pulled out a book from the pouch and crouched down. Reading the pornographic material.

Naruto was hiding behind a tree, standing on one of its branches, he peered outside and watched as Kakashi read his book.

"There's more to this than what it seems to be… There's got to be a loophole in this…" With that Naruto silently invoked a Kage Bunshin, giving it specific orders on what to do.

With that, Naruto had set his plan into motion, activating Shin Yogen no Me

"Kakashi-sensei, I will discover your motive and pass this test." Naruto swore, as he stared at the chuckling man below, his ever mystical eyes analyzing the laid back Jounin…

To Be Continued!

* * *

Whew, been doing a lot this Christmas! Especially since my High School friends had a reunion this week! I'm currently looking for a beta reader, for polishing of my works, I still have to make a lot of them, writer's block is killing my head for the moment!

Anyway, new portion! Omake Contests! I like readers post their ideas in this one… So everytime I put a chapter, I announce a winner and post it in this section!

Anyway, I'll try my hardest, I always did find my humor a bit lacking sometimes…

* * *

**Laughing at Dead People:**

(Inspiration came from blastwave (dot) com)

Itachi had a complacent gaze to the his surroundings as another horrified scream was engulfed by his everlasting flame. It has been a few years since the formation of the Akatsuki, and the leader has been looking for new recruits, but with Itachi doing the exams, he tends to unnecessarily kill people. Like what happened now…

He turned his gaze to his partner, the ever sadistic Hoshigaki Kisame, a former member of the Shinobi Gatana Shichi-nin Shu. (Seven Shinobi Swordsmen)

The mind of the said man were often times trotting back and forth from the job that they currently had

Seeing that questionable look on the shark man's face, Itachi had to ask in a most endearing and fully affectionate voice

"… What?"

Kisame merely replied, his own thoughts were cut off as the Uchiha Prodigy put him out of his musings

"You know Itachi-san, do you enjoy killing? I mean, sure, we're the big strong men from the Akatsuki but is unnecessary killing alright?" Asked the shark man

"I only do it because it is ordered and that is required, holding back against an enemy that you don't know means you are also holding back on your strength. Killing can't be avoided." Mentioned Itachi looking at Kisame with the same apathetic eyes. This time, his left eyebrow was somewhat twitching

"Yeah but, isn't it still, morally wrong?" Asked Kisame, Itachi had to roll his eyes on this one

"Moral virtues are dependent on one's certain values, a collection of certain values make up a moral virtue therefore, Moral Virtues are nothing but mere conjured values of man since the beginning. What about you, Kisame?" Itachi suddenly asked, Kisame then said

"What about me?" Asked Kisame to Itachi

"You laugh at dead people." Was Itachi's only response

"Hey! I do not!" Kisame retorted, Itachi mildly pointed to a lush greenery that had recently fallen lumber on the ground, however, just by looking closely, there was a pair of legs sticking out under the trunk

Silence followed as both Kisame and Itachi stared at the corpse

Then…

"… Ahahahahahahahahahahaha! Oh man, that must suck!" Kisame mentioned howling in laughter, at seeing the fallen dead body on the forest but then stopped when Itachi merely looked at him with indifferent eyes but Kisame could tell it was different, it was the pair of eyes that stated the truth as a matter-of-factly

"All right fine! Let's not talk about morals and beliefs ever again!" Kisame shouted bolting out into the field

"Thank God…" Itachi muttered, gripping the kunai tightly, to bad he couldn't kill Kisame today either, closing in on Iwa, he only had one thing to say to Kisame

"I hope this Deidara person kills him."

* * *

Jutsu Section!

Shin Yogen no Me (Doujutsu)- Eye technique that can slow time perception of the opponent and can also slow down any attack made to the user, this technique has a nice little feature into it as it can suggest and implant multiple suggestions that is most logical at the given situation, a weakness of this eye technique is that it can only slow down the time perception of his opponents if the said enemies are in his line of vision, it can also only be activated for a maximum of two minutes for the surge and implant of multiple scenarios and choosing the most logical choice would overload the mind and cause the user to lose his sanity.

* * *

Chapter Preview:

Growth starts at the first step forward, with each step, development takes place, one grows mature and aware to his surroundings, everything becomes clear, good and evil cannot be of contrasts anymore, childish dreams change to determined goals. Everything starts to move, with that single step.

* * *

Whew! And Done!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight: Bonds

Tension… It was something that Kakashi liked to put his students in his exercises, no wonder he was selected as Team Seven's Jounin instructor. But now, he didn't even show any hint of tension in his posture, in fact, he felt quite happy just squatting and reading his favourite book. He knew how kids tended to act impulsively and he knew just who exactly would be the first person to pop out of the greenery.

"Kakashi-sensei! You better be prepared to hand over some of those bells!"

Yep, right on schedule.

Naruto stood before the Jounin, firing the Hiraishin Kunai from his right sleeve at Kakashi.

Kakashi lazily dodged the kunai. Effortlessly, he let the kunai fly from his left. He then looked at the blonde who was already in front of him, with the blonde's left arm surrounded by a gust of wind that looked reminiscent of the Kaze no Yaiba (Blade of winds)

Naruto drove his left fist down at Kakashi who jumped from his position to the left, narrowly evading his Reppuken (Violent Wind Fist). The said technique bursts on the ground leaving a trail of smoke.

Kakashi then heard something, he heard a sound that was close to small coins hitting one another.

Then from the cloud of smoke, the Hiraishin Kunai flew towards him, straight to his face…

'_I didn't notice it was tied to a chain!' _Kakashi thought as he jumped up completely missing the Cyclops.

The chain then lashed out, it waved from the inside of the smoke, returning the kunai to its wielder.

From the smoke, Naruto suddenly jumped out, his right hand holding the kunai that he had lashed out earlier. He then activated his hidden technique, Hien

Kakashi was surprised, the Sandaime warned him about the blonde student being a wild card. But he never imagined…

Naruto was again on top of him, with his right arm raised, about to slash Kakashi in half.

In his surprise, Kakashi instantly made a recognizable jutsu from the academy. Immediately, the Kawarimi took effect as the ethereal blade slashed down at him. Replacing the one eyed Jounin with a piece of wood and splitting the hapless stump in half.

Naruto gritted his teeth. He knew, Jounin were slippery, they were more underhanded than Chuunin were. He landed safely on the ground and scanned his area.

Just then, he felt a chakra signature on his back, he couldn't turn around, there was no need to, he knew who it was, Kakashi was at his back, the hand of the man was on his left shoulder. The said man was still holding his book, and said to the blonde while he read.

"You got a pretty good attack rhythm, not only that, you know how to trick your opponents with your attacks. But if you don't have the intent to kill, you can't grab a bell." Said Kakashi

He then added, "Lesson one: Taijutsu."

Clasping his hands together, he closed his interwove his pinkie, ring and thumb with the middle and index standing up.

Meanwhile, Sakura and Sasuke noticed Kakashi's hand

"Taijutsu? That's not Taijutsu, it's a Ninjutsu! He's going to do a Katon technique!" Sakura said

"Shit!" Sasuke cursed, no wonder he was a Jounin…

"Konoha Hi-den… Taijutsu Ougi…" Kakashi's visible eye eerily gave of a glow

He squatted and moved his hand upwards

"Senen Goroshi! (Leaf Secret Body Arts Finishing Strike: One Thousand years of Pain)" Kakashi said, pushing his hand on Naruto's… Behind.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Sakura literally screamed

But what made Kakashi surprised was that the Naruto he had hit was a Shadow Clone.

"Kage Bunshin? That kid learned Kage Bunshin already?" Kakashi was bewildered, he became more and more interested in the enigma that was Naruto.

With Naruto.

That was NOT how a Tora seal was supposed to be used… Ever. Even though he wasn't the one to experience the… Unpleasant feeling of something being literally shoved up your ass, the ability of what the clone experienced travelling back to the user, made his spine tingle to proportions that couldn't even be described.

But it also created an insight on Kakashi's test. What he currently knew was that he wanted to pass two genin. But clearly, the current genin teams that Konoha implemented, consisted of three people. Kakashi obviously had something hidden in his sleeve.

So with that thought, he jumped from the branch he was on, and deactivated his Doujutsu, by now, he decided he would take another leap of faith, this time, he's going to drag both Sasuke and Sakura with him.

Landing down on the ground he silently and stealthily looked for his teammates, avoiding the clutches of the one eyed Jounin, during his run, his thoughts were becoming clearer and clearer about the exam

If the genin teams required there should be three, then why would Kakashi want two? Did he want an apprentice? No, as genin teams, it means that all three should not left behind, it has been tradition since the first Hokage that the genin teams should be made up of three, to expose them on safer grounds and to know how to act professionally in their line of work. A lacking member meant that there shouldn't be a genin team. They were supposed to balance each other out. So what would make them so balanced? Well for a physical assessment of the three, Naruto knew Sasuke was faster, he had a speed that most others in the academy could not keep up, even he couldn't, he hated to admit it. But it was true, Sasuke would strike fast and strike decisively. But he did not have enough stamina and power to finish a fight quickly. He had the technique to hit the vital points, but he did not have the proper strength to deliver a finishing blow. Compared to Naruto, who was unorthodox, who had no technique whatsoever, but he could hit fast and hit hard. He could strike so powerful that it could stagger or effectively kill his opponent in one blow, but he couldn't very well control his technique, he had a lot of openings compared to Sasuke, but it was compensated with his physical form. He wasn't fast, but he was agile and his strength in delivering blows was deadly. Sakura had the theory concept of fighting down perfectly, he can have the perfect form that could make even Sasuke jealous, but it was lacking when she didn't have a proper physical body. She can't strike fast enough to deal a blow against an opponent, she relied more on her strength than her attacking speed. But even if she did get a lucky hit in, it would spell a staggering blow quickly making multiple openings for her to strike. She wasn't as fast as Sasuke or as powerful as Naruto, but her form in Taijutsu was best, making her the better technique based fighter than the other two.

'_It's making sense now.'_ Thought the blonde, as he leaned back in a tree scanning his area

'_This isn't an individual test, this is a test of knowing what lies beyond the test, to read between the lines, this is about cooperation… Teamwork!'_

Of course, it made perfect sense! Why else were you put on three man teams? It is to balance out your weaknesses until the instructor teaches you how to cover them! How come he didn't notice earlier!?

Then he remembered what Kakashi said earlier,

'_The one that doesn't grab a bell, fails, is tied to a post while I eat lunch in front of him, and gets sent back to the academy'_

'_It was to act as a diversion, to make us think for ourselves, that's why we were separated. So, if one of us fails…'_

He thought grimly, as he then saw Sakura a heap on the ground, he gritted his teeth, he knew Kakashi began to hunt them down one by one, if he gets to Sasuke now… No, he had to take care of Sakura first, she needed aid first.

Feeling the effects of a Genjutsu on her Naruto remembered how to break Genjutsu back in the academy

First would be shock therapy, jolting the senses to a degree that it haywires the chakra flow from the opponent. Although tempting, he doubts that Sakura would appreciate that kind of option.

The second would be impossible since she's incapacitated, so that left him with the third, disrupting the flow of the chakra that's making the Genjutsu.

Pumping minimal chakra with his left hand, he pulsed it on the nape of her neck where her spinal cord was most prominent, it jolted Sakura awake.

Sakura stood awake, the Genjutsu finally being broken, she looked around with a worried expression on her face while yelling

"Sasuke-kun!"

But she was silenced by hand on her mouth, turning to her side, she saw Naruto who was gesturing her to be quiet. A finger on his mouth, he then quietly talked to Sakura

"C'mon, let's get Sasuke before Kakashi gets to him, I'm not asking you to fail him, in fact, I have a plan on how the three of us could pass this idiotic test." Said Naruto, Sakura could only nod solemnly

But then, she subtlety asked Naruto,

"I thought only two could pass this test, how are you…"

"It dates back on the standard issues that all genin teams should be consisted of three." Said Naruto and Sakura's mind immediately absorbed it

"That's right… But, I don't see why Kakashi-sensei would want two students…"

"It's not that he wanted two students, on the contrary, he would either get three students or he won't. At least, that's my suspicion." Replied Naruto and then added

"If we were only a team of two, then we couldn't balance each other out, in terms of Taijutsu, you have a better form than me and Sasuke. But you lack his speed and my hard hitting strikes. The same could be said for me, I have the power to stagger and possibly disable an opponent, but I don't have Sasuke's speed, or your technique. Much as I hate to admit it, but I can't accomplish anything if Sasuke or you were missing." Said Naruto and Sakura nodded in agreement

She could suddenly see a new light in Naruto, her view of him changed, somewhat.

As they ran, Sakura then saw Naruto that mentioned her to stop, he looked on the ground and saw the head of one Uchiha Sasuke, planted on the ground

"I see that you have a problem there." Said Naruto lazily, Sasuke spat at him, with venom in his voice

"Get me out of here… Now." Was his demand

Sakura was about to obey him, until Naruto mentioned to Sakura to stop

"What the hell, Naruto! Let's help Sasuke-kun! You can see he's stuck!" Said Sakura but Naruto replied coldly

"No, until he realizes he needs us then we won't help." Said Naruto, Sakura stopped

"I don't need your help." Said Sasuke and then added

"I can be fine on my own, I can handle it, I'll be fine, what's the use of bonds if it can't even guarantee your goal?"

Sasuke gritted his teeth, he remembered the bloodied corpses of the clan when Itachi showed how he killed them. He didn't need anyone! He won't need useless affiliations like friendship to make him stronger! He was a lone avenger, and he knew that emotions would truly hamper one's ability to do his best, emotions hurt when you lose those bonds, they hurt when someone destroys and betrays them!

"Then I guess this is the end of this exam." Said Naruto as he turned back

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked

"I meant that the purpose of this exam is a big hoax." Naruto replied his back turned from his teammates

Sasuke frowned at the blonde's statement as Naruto added

"I should've realized it sooner, the fact that the exam is not focused on individualistic skills, if it were that, then Sakura would've instantly failed."

"…What?" Sakura paled at that statement

"I didn't mean to be harsh, Sakura, but with your skills just adequate enough in the academy, you can't hope of ever passing Kakashi's test… _Alone_." Naruto emphasized the last word.

"B-But I have Sasuke-kun! I'm sure he'll help me out! Right, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura looked at the raven haired boy who she helped dug out the Uchiha then pushed her away

"Che, as if anyone would bother helping out someone who's weak. Let me tell you something, Sakura, you don't have the ability to stand up for yourself. Right now, of all the genin, you're the only one who's spineless. I don't need weak people holding me back. Get the hell out of my way, weakling. You're not meant to be a shinobi." Sasuke mentioned,

As he turned around, Sasuke's face was met with a powerful fist…

… Of a tearful Sakura who was clearly hurt.

"That was harsh Sasuke, a bit true, but harsh. She idolizes you, you know. It would helped if you just kept your mouth shut and let me do all the talking." Said Naruto, as he patted Sakura on the back, easing her pain, Sasuke merely looked away. Supporting his swollen cheek in the process.

"The truth is, even I myself found that this team was fucked up, I never imagined I'd work with people I didn't get along with in the academy, yet here I am, and I fully understood why I was chosen to be partnered up with you guys." Naruto mentioned

"It's to help each other out, I need Sakura's technique, she needs your speed, and you need my endurance. That's just in one perspective, in the end, the three of us balance each other out. We cover our weaknesses, that is, until we become independent of our own and we manage to solve our problems, no one goes on a solo mission as Hokage-jiji said, he emphasized that the need for teams are important. They are essential to the village as a whole, they can raise the chances of ninjas like us to get back home alive and well. Tell me Sasuke, what's your most desired wish?" Naruto turned around and looked at Sasuke in the eye

"Kill my brother." Was his simple reply

"Before your brother was an ANBU captain, he was a chuunin, before he was a chuunin he was a genin and during his genin years, even he had his share of teammates." Naruto then added

"Surpassing him is a hard goal Sasuke, but don't be impatient. Impatience leads to sudden death, if you want to kill Itachi then survive." Naruto then stood up, Sakura was calming down, she was grateful of the blonde, but now, she was having a new insight of the Uchiha as well.

To her right now, Sasuke was inconsiderate, a complete and belligerent asshole! Why did she fall for him anyway!? Her fists clenched, she'd show him! She'll be a strong kunoichi that he'll be the one to fall for her, and then he'll experience what it likes to be dumped!

With that in mind, she stood up, she didn't care about love for the moment, her concern for right now, being a kunoichi! She was about to walk away when Naruto had held her shoulder and told her one thing.

"Don't go out there on your own, a freshly graduated Genin can't even touch a Jounin, let alone beat him."

"Then, what are we going to do? It's his test, he pitted himself against us." Sasuke mentioned and Naruto raised one finger to make a point

"Simple, we have the advantage of numbers with us, compared to Kakashi, we easily cover our weaknesses and he would most likely be focused on one genin at a time just like what he is doing now." Naruto then told Sakura

"If we really want to be ninja, then we just have to rely on this little plan I made, I need all of your attention on this one, and cooperate with me. We only have one shot and we need it now before he finds us where we are." Naruto then motioned for Sakura and Sasuke to sit beside him and grabbed a stick, he grinned mischievously, Kakashi was going to fall… Hard.

With Kakashi:

Kakashi felt a sudden chill in his spine as it stood up on end, he didn't know why, but he sure felt something creepy just crawled up from his foot and making its way up, and squatting in the middle of the clearing was making it worse.

He shifted slightly, a concerned look on his features as his brow began to sweat.

Just then, he heard the voice of one of his students-to-be, Uchiha Sasuke's to be precise

"Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Skill)" Sasuke then let go from his mouth the largest fireball he can muster, just then, Naruto pointed from behind with his index finger, wind chakra concentrating and rippling wildly with such potential energy. He braced himself as he spread his legs and aimed at the fireball

"Fuuton: Ichuu no Kaze! (Wind Release: Point of Winds)" with that he let go of the powerful bullet of wind and his hand recoiled from the force, forcing to skid back by a bit and watched as the fire from Sasuke's technique grew wildly, it began to go faster and consumed everything in its path, a small half pipe like dent on the ground, to where the giant fireball trail of destruction started.

Sasuke then charged, remembering clearly what he said to Naruto before his plan had taken place

'_Once… I'll cooperate with you only once, and that's it.'_

Naruto made it clear that he would do just that. As he approached Kakashi, he instantly knew that he was out of the line of fire. Sasuke grinned and jumped, he back flipped in mid air, and went for his pouch pulling out five kunai and four shuriken, he tossed one kunai to his mouth and let the rest of his weapons lay securely in his interlacing fingers. He then unleashed a volley of his weapon downwards, Kakashi jumped out just in time, his Shinju Zanshu (Inner Decapitation) was clearly seen through, Kakashi then took another leap back as he then saw another volley of Shuriken and Kunai.

The Jounin then noticed that his ankle had unintentionally hit a small thin metal wire.

Kakashi then cursed his luck, as he glanced to the side and a trail of pink hair could be seen, he then turned his head to the side and watched as he saw countless metal wires woven like spider webs, form in the background, Kakashi's visible eye grew in surprise, he knew he had to do something.

Sakura knew that she was not of much use now, compared to Naruto and Sasuke, she had the least use being only able to use bunshin no jutsu, Kawarimi no jutsu and henge no jutsu, since then, Naruto assigned her to do one thing that she could do right, trap making.

'_You're not yet a close range fighter, that's why I'm trying to maximize your abilities at the moment. It's already hard being it the way it is. Sakura, your part is vital, you'll play the role for trapping Kakashi while Sasuke and I distract Kakashi.'_

Sakura had deepened her resolve, she knew she had no use, but still, for Naruto to rely on her at this crucial moment, it was something she was beginning to take pride in herself. To her, she meant something as a member of Team Seven.

Pocketing his book, he then went through a sequence of seals, but stopped midway when he saw Naruto popping out from above with the Tri pronged Kunai above his head.

Instantly, Kakashi stopped Naruto by catching the boy's right arm and his other hand with the kunai. Kakashi then looked behind and saw that he was too close, he had skidded to a halt for a moment, letting go a sigh of relief and a small trickle of sweat appearing from his forehead. Naruto smirked at this, he looked at Kakashi intently before vanishing in a cloud of smoke

"Kage Bunshin!"

He could then see Naruto and Sasuke appearing from his left and right going for him immediately, Kakashi took a logical choice and was about to jump, that is, until Sakura appeared from above and kicked him square in the abdomen, hurtling him towards the numerous metal wires that she made.

Naruto saw the perfect opportunity, he then activated his doujutsu, Sasuke immediately saw this, as streams of light blue chakra started circulating with the blonde's iris.

Naruto then dashed forward, Kakashi's perception of time slowed down, he could literally see leaves slowing down its swaying from the wind, he looked down and saw the blonde slowly going for his bells, but he couldn't do a thing, his body and his senses were dulled, it felt like being covered in some thick liquid, and sand, his body felt so… sluggish

Naruto immediately grabbed the bells from his teacher, Kakashi then felt his world go fast again, as the he hit the wires and countless traps were beginning to cover him, using his free hands, he had made himself a nice little Kawarimi and appeared somewhere else, ALMOST unharmed.

He dusted himself off and saw Naruto throwing the two bells at Sasuke and Sakura who both caught it with ease. Kakashi just scratched his head, after a few hours, no other teams were able to pass his test before. But now, just standing across him, were three genin hopefuls that broke the secret just in time too.

"I must say that you three managed to solve the puzzle a little early, I didn't expect that." Kakashi mentioned, as he jumped down on the ground walking towards his students with a smile on his face

"This is the first time, I've had to encounter a bunch of kids ever getting the bells in the first place." Said Kakashi and then added

"But you should know, only two of you"

"Cut the crap, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto cut him off, Kakashi raised an eyebrow, Naruto let off a grin and then continued

"When you said that only two genins will pass, you didn't mean it did you?" Asked the blonde

Kakashi smiled, he had to give credit to Naruto for that one

"No, I didn't I meant it as a test of individual skill." Said Kakashi to this Sasuke and Sakura took notice immediately

They never thought that Naruto was actually on the right suspicion!

"I meant is a team exercise, it was to test how willing you three are to cooperate with each other, I can see that it made results." Kakashi smiled at that

"As of now, consider Team Seven put in the active duty roster! Meet me tomorrow by eight in the morning sharp!" He said and the three genin nodded, seriousness overtaking their faces

Kakashi then added "Dismissed!"

The teacher than vanished in a cloud of smoke

Sasuke turned his back on the team, Naruto asked him,

"Where are you going?"

"Isn't it obvious? Team Session's over, I'm going home to train." Said Sasuke, Naruto meanwhile squinted his eyes for a moment, but decided to keep quiet

"Naruto…"

The blonde turned around and saw Sakura with her head down, Naruto raised an eyebrow and asked Sakura as nicely as possible

"Yeah, what?"

"I want to be strong, I don't want to be useless in this team, when I saw you and Sasuke handle Kakashi… I… Never felt so mortified of myself…"

Naruto remained silent for a moment and then turned into a full scale grin. He ignored the venom laced in her voice when she mentioned Sasuke, but noted that what she felt was just her upset at the Uchiha, she'll grow to get along with him over time.

"Well, what can I say? If you want to strength so much, then I might just help you! Come here tomorrow at six in the morning, I'll see what I can arrange with the old man." Said Naruto and Sakura smiled, to this she gave a grateful bow to the blonde and made her way off

Naruto scratched the back of his head, he didn't know what to teach Sakura, by his observation of her, he knew that she somehow matured, just a little and realized that not everything revolved around Sasuke.

He then hit his hand on his palm, he needed to get to Asuma for this one.

Team Ten:

Asuma clearly had a smile on his face, his team was nothing short of manageable, the old Ino- Shika- Chou Trio was still effective, he knew from the start that the three would cooperate rather well, so he decided just to give a mild team test, nothing like what Kakashi's test was like, this one, was totally under his hand.

Just then he had heard a voice familiar, the voice belonged to one Uzumaki Naruto, a temporary student he had, albeit unwillingly, he hit his palm to his forehead, and cursed and blamed the unknown entity that hated him so

"Asuma-sensei!" Yelled the blonde, Asuma sighed and asked the blonde

"What Naruto?" Asked the chain smoking Asuma, he needed a quick fix… Now.

"I was wondering if you still had one of those chakra papers with you." Said Naruto Asuma scratched the back of his head, wondering what would the kid do with chakra papers,

"And just what are you going to do with it?" Asked Asuma one eyebrow raised

"Just to help out a teammate…" Was his innocent reply

Asuma coughed up the item from his pouch, it was better to give it to Naruto now or risk of him finding out another one of his secrets. His paper given, Naruto wistfully walked away from the clearing with simple 'thanks' to Asuma. Well, at least he was polite…

With that, he made his way to the Hokage tower, about to talk with the OTHER Sarutobi

Hokage tower:

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the professor, the ninja god, was currently standing agape at what Kakashi reported, even long after Kakashi was gone from his office, he couldn't even believe the performance that Team Seven performed.

Let alone pass…

With this foreboding thought, he had heard the reports from Kakashi on what had transpired earlier on and instantly recognized the current trio…

'_The second coming of the Sannin' _He thought, amazed at the profile, it was almost as identical to the ones, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru back then when they were genin, it was frightening to a degree of how much these people were so alike. Closing his report, a knock on his door, got him out of his musings

"Old man, I need some help!" The voice from the door, clearly Naruto's, mentioned

With a simple "Come in", the blonde genin rushed up to the Hokage and asked him some basic jutsus involving elemental based attacks. Sarutobi scratched his head in wonder what the blonde wanted but was enlightened when he explained that the person that needed the help was his own teammate, Sakura. Naruto explained his desire to help her, and the fact that he pitied her somewhat. Sarutobi gave him the most basic jutsus he could find, they weren't very flashy, but they got the job done.

Naruto unfurled the scroll and saw exactly five elemental Ninjutsu, one of every element. He noticed the description in one,

_Fuuton: Shizuka no Kaze (Wind Release: Silent Winds)_

It was a technique mostly used to cut deeper than an average kunai if ever the conventional tools were out of stock. Naruto simply nodded and pocketed the scroll. All the while, he wondered what was a giant turtle doing at the front of the office, he had to shrug and let it go, for he had something important to do tomorrow.

The next day:

Sakura waited patiently at six AM, it was still early as she yawned, but she completely ignored her own boredom and decided to do her warm ups, she began to do some stationary jogging by herself and had let her sweat fall after that, she began doing some push ups, only reaching a maximum of forty push ups, that was when Naruto arrived at the scene, a bit late, but never Kakashi-time-late.

"I see you've been doing something while I was gone." He said as he then handed Sakura a piece of paper. Sakura tilted her head in question, she wanted to know what the paper was for. That is until Naruto added

"It's to determine your chakra type, the technique that you will be learning would be based on what your chakra would be, be it fire, wind, water, earth or lightning."

Sakura then stared at the paper

"Alright, now I want you to start concentrating chakra on that paper. The result depends upon where your chakra inclines more." Naruto said

Sakura gripped the paper hard, that small paper would decide her fate. It would depend upon what her chakra wanted, she was nervous at first, but relinquished such thoughts as she did not care anymore, the only thing she cared now was…

'_Strength…' _She thought as she focused her chakra on the paper

Instantly, the paper reacted, in a flash, the paper turned to dust, like grains of sand from her hands descending on the earth below.

Naruto grinned and unfurled the scroll, an earth type, and he had found a very effective jutsu for her to use at the moment

"Doton: Tetsu no Karada Chikujou (Earth Release: Steel Body Fortification)" Naruto said, giving the scroll to Sakura and had let her read the Doton technique

It made Sakura widen her eyes, a simple yet effective jutsu! Reading the inscriptions, it even had the Sandaime Hokage's writing and seal of approval!

_Doton: Tetsu no Karada Chikujou_

_A jutsu that enhances Physical abilities particularly strength, it amplifies damage with earth chakra imbued on the body, another ability is to deflect almost any physical attack, due to the imbued earth chakra. Basic jutsu, D-Rank._

Sakura was immediately entranced by the jutsu, she studied it very carefully, and letting the sequence of handseals go to her mind, analyzing the jutsu, comprehending it to the core, as she stood up, she let go of four handseals.

She could feel it, the chakra suddenly flowing through her skin, she grimaced. She looked at her hands as she saw the technique took effect, brown patches started to cover her pale skin, it was amazing. She could feel her strength double, as the technique began to completely cover her body. She then tried to test the said technique, she could feel her strength multiply! She aimed at the ground, a punch ready.

She then hurled her fist to the ground, giving off a resounding cry and the training grounds were shook with a powerful explosion. Smoke littered the air, as Naruto shielded himself from the impact and the dust, as the smoke slowly died down, a vague figure of Sakura standing in the middle of a small half meter crater was on her knees, panting heavily.

"So this is one of your weaknesses." Said Naruto and Sakura looked at her and smirked.

"Then, I'll just have to work… Harder." She said, to this, Naruto grinned all the while a green spandex wearing Jounin watched them

Sakura looked tired and she cursed under her breath, she was then on all fours, looking at the ground beneath her, damn her and her limited reserves!

"Shit…" Was all she could muster until the Jounin approached them.

"THAT TECHNIQUE YOU USED IS MOST YOUTHFUL! I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH PROWESS IN HANDLING JUTSU BEFORE!"

Naruto HAD to cover his ears the voice that the man had was likened to a nail scratching a blackboard, it made his ears bleed.

"I don't see what's so great about it, she couldn't even maintain that jutsu for more than three minutes, a standard to all mid to high genin levels." Naruto said, Sakura meanwhile cursed

Had she neglected her physical attributes that it resulted chakra reserves lower than a genin? This was not acceptable!

She slowly stood up, her hands and her legs were shaking, her outfit was already dirty, she raised her hands and went through the same four sequence seals until Naruto stopped her by holding her hands and stared at her intently

"That's enough, breaking your limits may be good once in a while but doing it again could cost you your life." Said Naruto, Sakura stubbornly yanked her hands away from Naruto

"NO! I need strength! I need to show everyone that I'm not useless! That I'm someone that can be relied on!" She said, Naruto remained silent, he looked neutrally at his teammate and then looked at the green clad Jounin

"Why are you here anyway?" Asked the blonde

The green clad Jounin merely said, "I HAVE HEARD THE MORTIFIED CRIES OF ONE YOUTH WHO WISHES STRENGTH! SO NATURALLY! I, MAITO GAI, THE GREEN BEAST OF KONOHA, SHALL HELP THIS YOUTH ACHIEVE HER GOAL!"

Naruto winced at the loudness of the Jounin's voice, talk about attention grabber!

"TELL ME! ARE YOU KAKASHI'S STUDENTS?"

Naruto answered him with a simple nod. Gai relatively got excited that he was crying rivers from his eyes and began screaming

"YOSH! I HAVE THE CHANCE TO ONE UP MY RIVAL YET AGAIN!"

Sakura merely raised an eyebrow, she could feel her reserves slowly replenishing themselves. She wondered what the said man was talking about.

"Excuse me?" Naruto, the more vocal one, asked

"AH! I APOLOGIZE! YOU DID NOT KNOW! FOR YOU SEE, KAKASHI AND I HAVE A RIVAL SCORING OF 50-49, CURRENTLY HE IS IN THE LEAD! BUT WITH THIS, I SHALL GAIN ONE MORE POINT BY MAKING THE YOUNG WOMAN MOST YOUTHFUL! I SHALL TRAIN HER IN TERMS OF CLOSE QUARTERS COMBAT!" Said Gai

Sakura's smile somewhat grew, if she could learn from this man… Then she would surely have the necessary amount of power!

Naruto had second thoughts, the man was eccentric beyond reasoning, his clothing was proof of that, the tight body hugging suit was nothing short of aghast to anyone and even Naruto had a distaste for such horrendous fashion sense.

But who was he to deny Sakura's decision? If Sakura wants to grow stronger then… Why not? If this man could teach her the principles, Sakura would understand the principle of close range combat. By the looks of the man, he seemed to be a taijutsu specialist, his build had told him, he could see it clearly if he were a Ninjutsu or Genjutsu specialist, his build would utterly be smaller.

"Okay, now let us start with laps!" Gai suggested and Sakura stood up eager until she heard Gai continue his sentence

"AROUND THE VILLAGE!" To this she fell face first into the ground, this was going to be a long, painful and utterly gruelling training.

Naruto had to laugh at that one, oh this was a good one

"Good luck with that Sakura!" Said Naruto as he turned his back away, obviously, he didn't want to have to do anything with the spandex Jounin.

Naruto thought it was good to learn Taijutsu, but the Kyuubi reminded him that he only needed adjustments with his body movement, learning a style wasn't important, fighting in a practical style of fighting was.

So with that in mind, he left the small clearing and also left Sakura to her demise err… Training regimen.

Naruto gave off a casual wave as Sakura was dragged from her leg, with the over enthusiastic Gai on dragging her, yelling

"Don't leave me with this lunatic! NARUTO!"

Naruto merely looked at her and waved a goodbye, a smile on his face that Sakura would literally kill

"Once this is over, you're so dead!"

Yep, she'll kill him.

Four Hours Later Kakashi had arrived, with all of his students quiet, Sakura was sleeping like a rock, Naruto was playing with his kunai and Sasuke merely stood leaning at the tree, Kakashi merely stood there with a sweat dropping at the back of his head. Where was the scolding? He couldn't hear quite the screeching voice of his student. He thought with his being late all the time, would always get in their nerves

"Uh, shouldn't you all be scolding me?" Asked Kakashi

Sakura's head suddenly popped up from the ground and yelled angrily

"Oh now, he wants to be scolded! What the hell sensei!?" Asked Sakura, Kakashi merely smiled and made his excuse for the day

"Oh, sorry, I was late because I was lost in the road of life."

All of the members were silent. Sasuke and Naruto had to hit their palms on their foreheads. If this was going to be like everyday…

"Anyway, I have a special session with you guys today!" Said Kakashi he felt perky, a little too perky

The three students raised an eyebrow, all of them had a sudden chill in their spines.

Now, Kakashi had at times been a tolerant person, and with these three, he can't afford to be tolerant, one was an Uchiha bent on revenge, the other was a kunoichi with a temper almost as bad as Tsunade, and a blonde who was more of a loose canon than anything else. So he decided he would need to let these people experience something that could improve their teamwork… One way or another.

To be continued…

* * *

Well, more filler chapters for now, Wave country would come soon, I promise!

Since none yet offered an Omake, I guess I'll make one again. Just in case, top four Omakes shall be posted after every chapter!

Any theme is appreciated!

* * *

Forgive me if my humor is lacking…

**Attention Span**

Deidara was walking ahead from his partner, Tobi was far back, he clearly did not want to be partnered with such a dolt

"Deidara-san! Wait!" Tobi yelled, Deidara continued to walk as if the message that Tobi sent was going from ear to ear

Tobi wondered why was Deidara ignoring him? He didn't do anything dumb did he? He didn't do anything naughty that's for sure! Tobi is and will always be a good boy! He grabbed something from his limited edition, tailor designed Akatsuki cloak. Proudly beaming at his uniform, he shuffled under the pocket of his said uniform and then ran over to Deidara, with something in his hand.

"Deidara-san! Here! I'm sorry for whatever I did!" He said handing over a piece of candy to Deidara

Deidara's hand then swallowed the damn thing as if it was the feeding mouth

Deidara then continued to walk not uttering a word to Tobi

"Deidara-san!"

No answer

"Deidara-san!"

Still no answer

"Deidara-san!"

This went on for another two hours until finally, Deidara snapped

"WHAT!? FOR FUCK'S SAKE TOBI, WHAT!?"

Tobi just smiled weakly under his mask and said, "I forgot…"

Deidara had a feeling of a headache rushing in… He needed to count backwards… NOW

By the time they had reached to the base for a meeting, Deidara had to remind Tobi

"Oi listen Tobi, when we go inside I want you to keep quiet and let leader-sama speak."

"Okie do- Ooh, a butterfly! Come here mister butterfly!" Tobi trailed off

Deidara had to breathe depply and pinched the bridge of his nose while shaking his head

"Got the attention span of a- Ooh! A red tail swallow! Come here little birdy!" Deidara trailed off

Far in the back, Pain and Itachi were at the base of the rocks, Pain was shaking his head

"I'm surrounded by idiots." He muttered

"I can relate to that." Said Itachi eyeing Kisame who was oblivious to the discussion

Pain was experiencing right now, his own pain of why did he recruit such… Bumbling idiots in an organization that was so evil it made sailors piss their pants

"Being a god sucks." Was all he could say as he went inside and began to drink some Sake

Forget world domination, he was going to be teacher!

* * *

Jutsu Library:

Fuuton: Shizuka no Kaze (Wind release: Silent Winds) A soundless technique used as a last resort in case Ninja weapons run out, D-rank, more on this next time

Doton: Tetsu no Karada Chikujou (Earth Release: Steel Body Fortification) low level jutsu used to increase the body's Strength and Defense, it makes all physical attacks and some Elemental jutsus useless. D-Rank

* * *

Chapter Preview:

A devious man reaches towards the village of the leaves, he spouts lies and spew sweet words. Vague as it may be, but Naruto and his team accepts. Their mission: To get rid of nuisances in Wave, Kakashi has his doubts

Next Chapter: Light


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine: Light

"Oh! Hokage-sama! I didn't expect you to be here!" Kakashi exclaimed, the three genins turned to their backs and before they knew it…

"Hmm? I don't see the- GACK"

They were out like light bulbs…

With Naruto:

Pain… There was only pain, he felt like being ran over by an ox, there was that indescribable feeling on the back of his neck that and the fact that he felt his whle upper torso being bound, and something his back and sides were leaning on.

Opening his eyes, he found himself bound, sitting on a raft and with Sakura and Sasuke at his sides

"JUST WHAT IN THE HELL IS GOING ON!?" The blonde literally screamed

Sasuke was the second to wake up, feeling groggy and something akin to a hangover, he reached up to grab his neck to shoulder it but could not do so. Opening his eyes, he could feel that the floor that he was sitting on was steadily shaking up and down, looking around he could see, that the area he was currently sitting on, was in fact a makeshift raft, he then turned around to see an confused blonde and an unconscious Sakura sitting along with him, with a pole by the center

"Ah, I see most of you are awake?"

To this, both boys turned around and saw Kakashi sitting by the side of the river reading his favourite book.

"What gives!? Goddamnit! Is this some sort of punishment? Whatever it is I didn't do it! I swear!" Said Naruto

"Oh silly boy, this isn't a punishment, more of like a training exercise." Said Kakashi

Naruto and Sasuke had to look at the man with a questioning look by tilting their heads

What?

Seeing the confused state of his students, Kakashi was about to explain the purpose of the exercise until Sakura woke up.

"Ow, what hit me?" Asked the girl

"Reality…" Was Naruto's simple reply earning a head butt from Sakura.

The blonde's head rocketed back a little from the pain as he said,

"The hell is your problem!?" Asked Naruto

"That's for leaving me behind with that lunatic! And another for talking smart back to me!" Said Sakura

Sasuke had to sigh and said to both his teammates, he felt he was the one who needed to act mature.

"Oi, morons, quit bickering and find a way to get out of here."

"WHO ASKED YOU!? BASTARD!" Replied Sakura and Naruto giving off Sasuke a head butt of his own

Sasuke had the urge to kill his teammates then and there, IF ONLY HE WASN'T BOUNDED BY THESE STUPID ROPES!

Kakashi coughed and caught the attention of his three students

"Ah, the reason for this little team exercise is that you three don't obviously have a grasp of how to really work as a team, instead yesterday, you three begrudgingly tried to work with one another."

To this the three students sneered at each other and then purposely turned their heads from one another

"I can't have that, as a team, you three should know when, where and how you three should cooperate. And those are, every time, every place there is and based on the given situation."

The three had to stare at Kakashi with scowls on their faces

"Basically, I'm teaching you three to be friends through a life threatening situation."

To this, three incredulous screams shouted out

"WHAT!?"

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura then saw Kakashi loosening the knotted rope by the end of the river bed, and then lightly kicking the said raft towards god knows where

"See you back in Konoha kids!" With that, Kakashi disappeared in a plum of smoke

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO US! COME BACK HERE KAKASHI! DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE US BEHIND HERE!"

Naruto said, as the little raft drifted away…

A few moments of silence with the occasional grumbling from Naruto was what all could be heard on the little raft, none of them were willing to talk to one another. Sakura maintained her silence, she's not someone who you could easily make amends with or so Naruto thought. Sasuke just didn't like to talk and Naruto was too preoccupied swearing at his teacher to do anything.

A few more minutes and the team began to feel that the ride they were on was starting to turn turbulent.

"Is it just me? Or is the raft starting to shake?" Asked the blonde. Sasuke looked at the two visible corners in front of him, he saw that indeed, the little pieces of bamboo sticks making up the raft were beginning to clatter

He cursed under his breath

"SHIT!"

Sakura then ranted, "Some Jounin he is! He doesn't know how to make a proper makeshift raft!"

Naruto casually replied, "Yes, Sakura, because ninjas use rafts to get across a river."

Another head butt…

"Would you quit it with the smack talk!" Demanded Sakura

"I talk however I want! You can't stop me! Don't tell me what to do! Who the hell are you? My dead mother!?"

"No! I'm just telling you to get your head in the situation! Contribute why don't cha!"

"I've done more things here than I can count how you were able to throw a goddamn punch!"

"Y-you bastard! How dare you insinuate that to me!"

"Me!? I'm not insinuating anything!"

"Would the both of you SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Sasuke snapped at the two

"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!" came the reply from Naruto and Sakura

Then the two continued to have another heated argument.

This was no good, the rapids were starting to get wilder, Kakashi's rope tying was too tight to squeeze out off, and to top it off, the raft was slowly tearing apart. Sasuke clenched his teeth, and cursed, there was no way he'd die here! No, he would make sure of that! For now, it's every man for himself!

"If we don't get out of here, we'll be dead" Was his simple statement and Sakura replied

"Isn't it obvious, genius!?"

Sasuke growled at that

"Ooh, scary! I wish I hadn't pissed of Mr. Uchiha who has a duck ass for a head!" came another remark from Sakura

Meanwhile, Sasuke threatened,

"You. Take. That. Back."

"Make me! Prissy boy!"

Sakura was now swaggering Sasuke with the Uchiha unknowingly walking right into it, meanwhile, Naruto was starting to feel dizzy as the ride got even more turbulent. He felt his stomach turn upside down and churn as the raft slammed into the waters below and jumped right back up soaking all three members…

"Ooh…" Was Naruto's simple reply

Sakura and Sasuke quickly took notice of this, as they could see that the blonde was turning pale and his face showed a grimace of discomfort and started to turn to a shade of green.

"I don't feel so good."

Sakura and Sasuke looked scared, and they both started to furiously unbind the ropes that Kakashi had done.

"I shouldn't have eaten that Ramen surprise, I ate about twenty seven of those…"

To this Sasuke panicked as Sakura started to whimper. Just then, Naruto unloaded the contents of his stomach like a broken wall on a damn.

"**BBBLLLLLEEEEEEEHHHHHH"**

Both Sakura and Sasuke were hit by Naruto's projectile as they looked at the vomit on their shirt started to smell

"EEWWW!" Sakura, being the more vocal one, exclaimed, meanwhile, Sasuke stared coldly at Naruto so that he could unload all his frustrations on him.

"Ooh…" Was all Naruto could say as he felt weak and was feeling light headed, he was slowly sprawling on the ground.

The waters then soon calmed down as the jagged rocks and pitfalls seemed to have ended, Both Sakura and Sasuke then calmed down for a bit, Naruto was drifting off every now and again, but otherwise fine. Sasuke had to look in disgust, the blonde was there sprawled on the floor of the raft bound hard by ropes and couldn't lift a muscle.

"Hmph… Goes to show you how weak he is…" Was his simple reply

"Oh, like how he solved the bell test while you couldn't? Talk about weak huh?" Sakura added meanwhile Sasuke had to ask, "I better hope that wasn't sarcasm."

"Oh no! Sarcasm is only reserved when you're being an ass, which now, clearly you're not." Said Sakura

Sasuke scowled at that statement.

Meanwhile, a loud sound came through Naruto's sense of hearing, it flooded his ears. He tried to stand up but found it hard to do so as his body was bound by the rope that was connected to the dingy raft.

"What got you so elated?" Asked Sasuke, the blonde then stared behind Sasuke and Sakura's back, he then said,

"The sounds of crashing water."

"Come to think of it…" Sakura said as she and Sasuke then turned their heads on their backs and saw something on the horizon that made his heart start to race

"A waterfall." Was all he could say and the three of them panicked.

"Shit! This is all your fault, Sasuke!" Naruto blamed the Uchiha

"My fault? How come this is my fault all of a sudden? Do you think it's my fault Sakura was weak and couldn't coordinate well!?" Sasuke exclaimed

"Me!? You're the one that doesn't want to get along! How come you're placing this on me!?" Sakura she was shaking with fury at the audacity of the Uchiha

"It's because you're weak! You can't even land a scratch on my sleeve! That's why it's your fault!"

"How dare you! It wasn't as if the test yesterday was individual! It involved team dynamics! If it weren't for that baka over there we'd be back at the academy!" Said Sakura

"Idiot!? How come you're insulting me when I didn't even do anything to you!?" This time, Naruto replied, consider team dynamics dropping further from zero, if it could still be seen as a team, right now, all three of them looked like they would literally kill each other given the chance.

"Simple, knucklehead! It's because you left me for dead with that green spandex of a disaster! Even now I'm shivering in fright just by remembering him and his clone of a student!" Sakura shouted

"Well you wanted to get stronger didn't you!? It was by chance that he was there anyway!"

"Screw you! I wanted to get stronger! Not get the idea of wearing tight green spandex around Konoha!"

"Don't blame me on your stupid weakness! You've been fawning over duck ass over there since the start of the second year in the academy!"

"Hey, I resent that remark!" Sasuke said, Naruto ignored him.

"Well, you don't have the right because you don't want to be part of this! If you want to complain, go take that thing keeping your ass tight and toss it! Geez, you're already a grouch when you're twelve! I'd hate to be one of your grandkids once that ever happens!" Sakura remarked and then added

"Oi stupid, the waterfall?"

"How am I supposed to solve our entire problems pinky!? I'm bound here and I can hardly stand because I puked!"

"Who said you need to solve this problem, dobe!? This is our problem too!" Replied the Uchiha

"Shut your damn mouth, duck ass! Nobody asked you!"

Sakura started to whimper again as if she knew her demise was about to come

"We're pretty much dead aren't we?" she said

"I refuse!" Both boys said

"I still have my goal of killing my own brother!"

"I still have to become Hokage!"

"**No matter what, I'm not going to die just yet!"**

Naruto then activated his own doujutsu, unbeknownst to Sasuke and Sakura, he tried using the basic rope escaping technique but failed seeing the complexity that Kakashi had done with the rope bindings, he then slid over near to Sasuke's side and grabbed his kunai pouch.

Sasuke felt the sudden sensation of having his pouch grabbed, so he turned around Naruto and asked

"What the hell are you doing!?"

"Getting the three of us out of here, what does it look like?" Naruto replied, grabbing from the pouch what he needed, a kunai, his own kunai was lodged hidden under his sleeve, but with his arms bound to his back, the launcher was pretty much jammed.

"Grab a kunai from Sakura's pouch and start cutting the rope that's binding us to the pole, then we're going to cut the ropes tying us." Naruto said and the two nodded.

Sasuke did what he was told, and slowly but surely, he rummaged to Sakura's pouch all the while, Sakura was trying to grab into his pouch but found none.

"Don't worry about me, I have an idea." Said Naruto as he then proceeded to cut Sakura's rope bindings.

When Sakura was able to stand, she had to immediately grab the kunai from Naruto and began to cut Sasuke's bindings, Naruto had to maintain his composure

Thirty seconds left before stopping his doujutsu

"Sakura, I want you to hold my right hand with your left hand." Said Naruto and Sakura did so,

"I want you to follow the handseals that I'm going to say on how you usually do it with your left hand, got it?"

Sakura nodded a serious expression

"Good, now, we'll start with Tora (Tiger)!" Sakura quickly followed and the blonde grinned, there was hope yet.

"Nezumi (Rat)!"

"Usagi (Rabbit)!"

"Tatsu (Dragon)!"

"Fuuton: Shizuka no Kaze! (Wind release: Silent Winds)" Naruto yelled and immediately, wind chakra began to form on his fingers, surrounding it like claws. The blonde then literally clawed at the ropes loosening the grip and setting him free.

Perfect, two minutes had already passed.

As soon as the rope was cut, Sakura and Sasuke were fast enough to jump, with Naruto was about to finish cutting the rope with his chakra powered hands, he looked at the edge of the running body of water. He was about to jump when the rope binding the small raft snapped making the small object collapse from the force of the water and Naruto's weight.

"Shit!" Naruto said as he was submerged in the water, Naruto tried to surface, he looked at the sight were the waterfall currently was, he tried swimming to the side, but the force of the water was too much for any human to bear, the torrent crashed upon him, forcing him ever closer to the edge

"Dobe!"

"Naruto!"

Both his teammates shouted, the blonde looked around, and saw his teammates rushing on the side, Sasuke apparently had a kunai ready that was tied to a metal wire, he then watched as he threw it to a nearby branch. With Sakura doing her jutsu again, she punched the ground on the left side of the river bed weakening the grip of the roots on the ground. With that, the tree was slowly swaying to the side, Sasuke let the kunai fly from his hands towards his target, he then pulled the collapsing tree for Naruto to grab on.

But the tree was too far from his reach, the blonde cursed as he raised his right sleeve, now that he was free from the ropes, he could now launch the kunai from his sleeve.

He then aimed his hand carefully at the tree and fired from the flick of his wrist, a small resounding click was heard and the kunai flew fast from his sleeve. Naruto was smart enough to incorporate a small amount of chakra into the blade, forcing it to go even deeper into the wood. Naruto then brandished his chain making him stay on the edge of the waterfall. Fortunately for Naruto, the chain with him was sturdy enough though it was small. Sakura and Sasuke then went to Naruto fast enough to grab the small chain before it broke.

As they recovered the now soaking blonde all of them wore masks of fatigue and happiness

"Heh… We did it…"

Naruto remarked quickly. As he saw the bamboo sticks fell from the top of the waterfall and crashed down on the body of water below, to the right side of the riverbed below, was Kakashi sitting under a shade of a tree and reading his favourite piece of literature. Naruto had a tick forming on the back of his head, Sasuke sighed and Sakura's left eyebrow was twitching.

Here they were, physically and mentally exhausted, wet and smelled like vinegar on shrimp paste, and the scarecrow was pampering himself under the shade of a tree with a cool spring breeze flowing.

"Well, at least the three of us agree on one thing…" Naruto said and the three nodded simultaneously

"**Kakashi is the worst teacher ever." **

All three looked at Kakashi who was giggling like a school girl as he read page after page of one of the Sannin's greatest literary masterpieces

"Oh, Yaeko-chan, you naughty little girl, you…"

Kakashi muttered in his reading as he glanced upwards when he saw a fallen tree arching over the waterfall that connected to the area where he drifted his students from, as far as he knew, there was never a tree bridge that was photo perfectly placed between the two sides of the waterfall with three genin perfectly placed in the middle

"Well I must say that you three certainly know when to make a dramatic presentation." Kakashi casually said earning a glare from his three students. The teacher then vanished from under the tree via shunshin and then reappeared right next to his students, all the while, curious at the hateful and spiteful looks at him.

"What? I helped you guys make friends with each other didn't I?"

To this, the three glared at him even more, Naruto was the first to speak

"You know, as much as this was life threatening, cost me the contents of my stomach…" To this, Sakura and Sasuke shuddered

"and ultimately almost paying WITH MY LIFE! You were right, sensei." Said Naruto and Kakashi smiled.

"See?"

Sakura meanwhile, interjected

"While I'm sure that it did form some… Bonds between us, the whole ordeal was completely unnecessary."

"Not really… You three would have outright killed each other if I just left you in a single room." Kakashi said, scratching the back of his head

"True, but there's no guarantee we'll do that anyway." Sasuke replied

"But I simply chose the best medicine for you three, since all of you work better under pressure, I'm sure you would've pulled through." Replied Kakashi

"And what happens when we didn't cooperate fully well with one another?" Naruto simply asked

"Hey no worries, I was down there the whole time after I pushed the three of you off. I would've simply caught you. Hey, I couldn't leave my students die a horrible, and agonizing death now, would I?"

The three shuddered at that comment, seeing the jagged rocks bellow the waterfall

"Well, at least there are some improvements… How about I treat you guys for lunch?" Kakashi's sensitive nose then picked up a smell of rancid noodles and a green look from his three disciples and then added

"After all three of you took a proper bath."

With that everyone agreed whole heartedly and Kakashi informed them to meet him in Ichiraku's once they were done.

Forty-five minutes later:

All of them were on the designated location, Ichiraku's ramen. Not many may have known this but in reality, Kakashi was a cheapskate, he'd like to keep his money for himself, he was often uptight on his budget being that he chooses the more… Economic side of materials rather than the fanciful ones. Given his dangerous job, it would have made Kakashi no effort to buy very expensive Numa no Kuni leather gloves, but instead, he settled for the locally made cotton gloves that standard Jounin wear. Given his carefree and apathetic nature, he knew he wouldn't mind after all, a use for something does not depend on price, it depends on the man using it. So it was no surprise that he'd select the cheapest restaurant in the whole village, Ichiraku, but Kakashi would come to rue the day that he had set forth in this place with Naruto.

KA-CHING

Kakashi simply sat there staring at Naruto while he looked pale, the total payment for his share? One thousand five hundred and eighty two ryou. And that was Naruto's bill ALONE, the owner had the bright idea to separate HIS meal from Kakashi's, Sasuke's and Sakura's. It was appalling to him as was to his shivering wallet who he thought might have been dead for being sucked up dry.

'_Next time, we go for dumplings.' _Thought Kakashi as Naruto belched and patted his stomach from a hearty meal.

The Jounin kept muttering something about how all that money just slipped away from his hands.

Just then, four more people entered the restaurant

"I'm telling you, if you don't get that lazy ass of yours gearing for a mission tomorrow, I swear I'll cut down every single little finger and poke your eyes out!"

The other one replied,

"Calm down, Ino, it's Shikamaru you're talking to; no amount of threats could ever make him change his attitude."

"Alright guys, no need to quarrel, we're already here, so let's pick our food and enjoy ourselves."

The older one said.

"Wow, I'd never expect you guys were here as well." Said a newcomer's voice,

"Indeed, it is a pleasure meeting your peers in your academy days again. It has been quite a while." Replied the monotonous voice

"I see that you have your fair share of children to take care off." Replied the woman's voice

"Could say the same thing to you." Casually replied the older man

They then entered the small shop and found a pale Kakashi gaping at the ramen black hole that was Naruto

"I see that you found out about Naruto's little obsession with ramen." Said Asuma as he smirked at the one eyed Jounin in front of him

"I knew he liked ramen, but I never knew he had such an obsession." Muttered Kakashi and Asuma sighed and then continued,

"Fine, fine, I'll share twenty percent of what the total payment would be, add these three twerps with me, they'll be eating here too."

Kurenai then said, "I would also like to treat my students for a job well done for today's team exercise. Treating them to ramen for a first should do the job."

The students outside peered their heads inside and saw their fellow acquaintances quietly sitting from eating. Ino took this chance to glomp Sasuke, who merely gave an aggravated sigh,

"Get off me, Ino." Sasuke deadpanned, Ino giggled and replied

"Oh, Sasuke-kun, you're so shy!"

Sakura merely raised an eyebrow and then laughed,

"And what, pray tell, seems to be so funny, forehead girl?" Ino turned to her rival who was laughing at the scene

"Oh, nothing, just the fact that Sasuke over here doesn't seem interested in women at all."

Sasuke replied, trying to correct her statement before the others misunderstood, especially Naruto. God knows, how he would address this

"At the moment." Sasuke added

Ino pouted and crossed her arms. Turning her head to the side who saw a content Naruto who was smiling wistfully as if he knew something.

Ino raised an eyebrow and asked her fellow blonde,

"What are you so happy about?"

The blonde waved off a simple reply, "Oh nothing, just the fact that I got to eat all of that delicious ramen thanks to Kakashi-sensei."

To this, the scarecrow Jounin whimpered.

Ino looked at the Jounin then to Naruto who merely belched again to indicate that he had his share of fill.

"I envy you, you know? You eat and eat and eat, and you don't even get fat."

Naruto raised an eyebrow and said, "Well, when you have the energy to do a lot of things, you use it more, I just happen to have the energy to do a lot of things that involve a lot of movement."

"But Chouji trains too, and look at his build!" Ino replied

Sasuke replied for him, "It's because he takes a lot more energy than a lot more to expel. Don't you think the potato chips he's carrying is a proof of that?"

"They're right Ino, geez, if you just eat and train a lot more, you could have a figure as great as probably that woman I saw by the dango shop."

Everyone older than the nine students knew who Shikamaru was talking about, it was none other than the wild Special Jounin, Mitarashi Anko

Naruto merely smirked and said to Shikamaru, "I didn't know you were observant of the female body Shikamaru, if memory serves you find women troublesome, and would rather marry a cloud in a shape of a woman rather than a woman that you saw on a day to day basis."

Shikamaru scratched the back of his head and replied, "I'm a guy too you know, I happen to have the same hormones as any other guy."

This time, Kiba interjected, "Yeah, any guy except Sasuke!"

To this, nearly everyone laughed while Sasuke had a tick at the back of his head

"At least I get a higher chance of getting laid than you do, dog breath."

Naruto rolled his eyes and replied, "Like that will ever happen."

To this, Sasuke conceded, "Stop doubting my sexual preferences, I am and shall forever be straight. End of topic."

"Geez what a kill joy." Kiba muttered and sat down, Hinata followed, sitting beside Naruto

She bowed as like any other graceful lady and greeted Naruto

"Good afternoon, Naruto-kun." She replied, Naruto turned his head and grinned at Hinata who returned the gesture.

He then added, "Yo, Yamato Nadeshiko (1)"

Hinata blushed and Ino and Sakura raised their eyebrow, Kurenai meanwhile, chuckled inwardly while saying, "Oh my…"

Kakashi and Asuma meanwhile, simply laughed.

Kiba was fuming and Sasuke's eyes gleamed, ooh, now he had something against the blonde.

Shikamaru then ranted, "Geez Naruto, you have a way with words but you don't even know it, who knew you could literally FLIRT with the Hyuuga-heiress."

Naruto meanwhile tilted his head to the side and asked as if he was the only oblivious person in the small restaurant.

"What? I only said the truth…" He sulked, meanwhile Sasuke said,

"True but have you ever heard of the word, 'tact'?"

To this Naruto gave him a middle finger salute and told him to shut the hell up

Meanwhile Ino and Sakura added, "I never knew Naruto was such a sweet talker."

Hinata then finally spoke, "D-Do you mean it? Naruto-kun?"

Naruto meanwhile, nodded and said, "Can't say that you're not, I'd be lying if I did."

Hinata then stood up and tuned from her teammates.

"I-I… Have to inform father." With that, she dashed to her home as fast as possible.

Kakashi and Asuma meanwhile put a hand on each of Naruto's shoulder

"I hope you would take responsibility for this." Said Asuma.

"I may not have been with you since you're childhood, but I'll try to support you as to whatever painful experience that you'll undergo."

"Eh? What? Screw you guys! I can't understand any of you!" Naruto said as he exited out of the restaurant on his way home.

By the course of the next few weeks, Naruto and his team were subjected to countless exercises and training, Sakura's training with Gai was going smoothly by far, and the pink haired girl was beginning to be taught on how to open the first gate. Gai would have to postpone his teaching of the Omote Renge (Primary/Front Lotus) since this was the start of Team Seven doing missions as of now.

At first, Naruto was excited about the idea of doing missions, the very thought of doing epic missions that only fairy tales talked about, was so grand that it made his skin giddy.

So he was extremely disappointed when he found out that the first mission he'd be doing was weeding out a garden.

Then painting a billboard,

Then chasing after the Fire Daimyo's cat.

Then doing groceries for an old couple

Then chasing after the Fire Daimyo's cat again.

This frustrated the blonde to no end, coupled by the fact that Kakashi and Sasuke often teased him about his statement to Hinata drove him of the wall, right now, they were chasing after the Fire Daimyo's cat, again.

"Raven here, target is in sight." Said the voice in the radio phones

"Fishcake here, Target is within twenty meters of reach. Request in initiating capture." Said the other voice

"No, not yet, that cat is smart, we have to be in position to surround it." Said the voice, the two boys understood it was Kakashi

"This is Cherry Blossom, I am in position and the target is in sight."

"Wait for it… Wait for it…" Kakashi watched intently at the little monster called, Tora-chan. Currently it felt alarmed, its raised tail was the indication of it, but then when calmed down and groomed itself, Kakashi immediately commanded

"NOW!" With that, all three students intercepted the cat, with Naruto the one ending up holding the struggling cat, it furiously began scratching Naruto and began to pounce on him

"**YYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGH!"**

Five minutes later:

Tora-chan began struggling in the arms of the Fire Daimyo's wife, it hissed and screamed at the grip of the cat, all the while, in the back, Sasuke and Sakura were restraining an obviously pissed off blonde. Who was yelling curses at the said cat that he dubbed, the little devil.

"Let at him! Let me go! I'll skin it alive! I'll pull out its genitals!" He threatened, Sarutobi gave a thankful sigh that the fire daimyo's wife was not in the building anymore and that she was oblivious to Naruto's constant threats to the aforementioned monster.

He then grabbed another scroll from his desk and said

"All right, this is another D-Rank missions, you are to go to the fields and till the soil and plant fertilizer on the ground."

"NO!" Naruto protested his arms crossed, he then turned around and began pouting

"No more stupid D-Rank missions! I never thought we had to do CHORES as missions. I. Am. Pissed!" Said Naruto, with the things that are going, he was not going to remain sane just doing all those chores in one week.

"Naruto, there's a requirement that you need before you can do higher ranked missions!" Replied Iruka

"And what exactly is that requirement?"

Naruto asked, the scar faced Jounin replied

"Ten D-ranked missions!"

"But we exceeded that amount already! Why can't we do an even much better mission!?" The blonde asked frustrated. To this, Sasuke backed Naruto with Sakura doing the same.

Sarutobi then conceded,

"Fine, here's a C-rank mission, you will meet your employer shortly."

After a few minutes, a shrewd man walked into the room of the Hokage's office, short stature, wily long hair, and green shades that hid his beady eyes. The man wore a black suit with a purple necktie. He was smiling rather well while he held his cane with his right hand

"Kakashi, I want you to meet your client, his name is Gatou." Said the Sandaime and the teacher nodded

Gatou meanwhile, viewed his set off mercenaries, they were mere children with one lazy looking adult, they may be not much, but he had heard rumours of the lazy looking Jounin, Copy Ninja Kakashi. He smiled even further, he knew it was going to be easy with the Copy Ninja now here.

"Gatou-san, could you please explain the situation of as to why you want to employ our services?" Asked the Sandaime, Gatou merely smiled again and bowed his head

"Yes, I just want some ninjas to escort me to Wave and take care of a few… Pests." Said the man, Kakashi listened intently, he knew that the shrewd man wanted to get rid of some people, bandits maybe?

"You mean bandits?" Asked the blonde, to this Gatou nodded his head and said

"Yes, a few bandits here and there, being a very influential man in Wave, I have many people who are after my hide just for my savings and property. My company is concerned when I left Wave a few months ago for a vacation, seeing as this is my first time out of the country without any escorts, I decided to go to the nearest hidden village and escort me back home." Kakashi nodded, accepting the man's request, the Sandaime handed him the folder and kept it.

He then turned to his students and then said, "Alright you three, I want you to meet me at Konoha's southern gate at Four pm sharp, bring all the essentials, survival kit and rations, the trip to wave would take us two weeks if we go with Gatou-san's pace.

The three nodded and went to their own houses to prepare themselves for the mission.

Gatou left the room and said to them that they'll meet them at the southern gate as well, Kakashi remained in the room with the Sandaime still looking at him intently

"You know something don't you, Hokage-sama?" Asked the scarecrow Jounin

Sarutobi merely nodded and said to Kakashi,

"The fire Daimyo sent me an investigation and apprehension mission for Gatou, apparently the smuggling of drugs inside fire country has made a connection to Gatou's shipping company, I want you to take care of this Kakashi, make enough photographic evidence and send them back here, once we have proof that he is guilty of smuggling opium on Fire Country, apprehend him. If he resists, then do not hesitate to use force." Said the Sandaime, Kakashi nodded, he knew about the situation in Wave, and knew that there were countless times ships were raided in fire country that shipped drugs to the capital. Most of the ships came from Gatou's shipping enterprises but often, he could slip through the jurisdiction of Fire Country due to his influence. The Fire Daimyo knew enough of the bribing and corruption inside his government, and he was getting fed up with it, with this, he would expose the root and the whole tree will fall. The fact that the daimyo consented to the third Hokage meant one thing, it was time to take drastic measures, pretty soon, Sarutobi Hiruzen himself shall make a move on his own too.

Kakashi nodded and vanished in a plum of smoke, he was wary of this mission, he knew that something was bound to happen, he just hoped Murphy's law doesn't exactly pop out at the time it isn't needed.

To be Continued…

* * *

Ah, I am glad I am free for a moment, the tough schedules are taking a toll on me, I'm pretty lucky that I got to write like this…

Anyways, Omake time!

* * *

**Stress Reliever…**

It was a sunny day the birds were singing, there was not a cloud in the sky… Which was totally unrelated by the fact that the true setting was inside a giant cave.

Inside the giant cave, there stood the members of the world's most mysterious organization, the Akatsuki. Each member was a criminal in one point or another, each having a unique reason to join.

All nine members stood on each of the designated hands that their rings had been placed, particularly, Sasori of the Red sands was standing on the left thumb with the Kanji of sphere glowing ominously below

To his left, stood the newest member of the Akatsuki, Hidan. He thought that the man resembled a complete loon case, offering prayers like a fanatic to his own god, Jashin. As they prepared to start the meeting, the one that stood at the right thumb with the Kanji for zero spoke. Commencing the meeting

Sasori always hated these meetings, it made him impatient, and when he becomes impatient, he tends to become… Violent.

As if it had a mind of its own, the tail of his puppet Hiruko violently swished around, attacking the nearest living thing in sight, in which, Hidan was unfortunate enough.

"Ouch! Geeze, Motherfuck! What the hell!?" Hidan cursed

Pein then asked, "Is there something the matter, Hidan?"

"This, goddamn puppet fetishist just stabbed me with his tail! And on my head as well!" Hidan said pointing to the top of his head where the needle was skewered at the crown and gorily went through his jaw

"Seriously you better get this off me before I slash you with Jashin-sama's wrath!" Hidan said, Itachi meanwhile, raised his left eyebrow.

"I can see why he was recruited."

Pein nodded and then said, "Deidara, for the next missions, I want you to go and scout Suna no Kuni for the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi no Shukaku, find out his identity and have a monitor with him with the help of Sasori, I have given you all the orders for this meeting, dismissed."

With that, the astral projection of pain and the one with the flower on her head vanished, his associates still remaining on the top of the fingers.

"So… Uh… What now?" Asked Deidara

"Do our tasks, obviously." Said Zetsu, his other half then said, **"Dumbass!"**

Deidara had a tick on his forehead.

"Zetsu, you better keep half of your mouth shut if you don't want me sticking a wooden stake in your face!"

"Geez, you're that sensitive?" Asked Zetsu

Sasori didn't have the patience to stay put in one place for long, so he jumped from his position and exited the cave.

Speaking of wood…

Zetsu had to ask Sasori.

"Sasori, I want to ask you something."

"What?" Was his simple question

"I want to know if your, you know…" Trailed Zetsu, to this Sasori tilted his head

"My what?"

"I mean your… Happy stick, you know…" Zetsu trailed of again

To this, Sasori went straight to the point, "Speak up Zetsu, I have no patience in these kinds of things."

Zetsu knew that Sasori was violent when his patience ran thin, and that was like saying it was always fine to walk on thin ice.

"**I mean your dick, is your dick made of wood?"** His other half callously said, to this, his white half did a face palm, Zetsu mumbled about considering himself ground fertilizer. To this, Kisame laughed wickedly, Hidan laughed maniacally, Deidara somewhat chuckled with Itachi and Kakuzu merely stood there looking apathetic as ever.

Sasori had never heard this question before, not even from Deidara himself, as his partner figured that his, 'Private life' was needed to be left alone. So without any experience for that question, he answered rather callously

"I'm made up of wood, with the only thing organic is my heart, so you probably know the answer."

Hidan then said to Sasori, feeling as he needed some form of payback

"Hahaha! Hey, Sasori! When was the last time you got laid?" Asked the invulnerable man

Yet, another question came up that Sasori couldn't answer quite well. So he said,

"No, I don't believe so, I never got what you said as, 'laid'" Said Sasori, he really needed to get going, the questions that bombarded him made him, somewhat anxious.

"No wonder you're miserable!" Hidan said between a fit of laughs, Sasori didn't know why, but he suddenly had the urge to brutally and utterly destroy Hidan.

"Better yet, I bet you're stiff all the time but you can't… Expel it! Hahaha! Oh Jashin-sama, what an idiot this guy is!"

That had been the last straw!

With all his anger, his tail began to quietly creep towards the laughing Hidan and began to stab him over and over again

"Hey, what are you doing? OW! What the he- OW! Stop it you bastar- Ow!" He said as his tail began sticking and extracting the needle of his tail and then sticking it again in different parts of Hidan's body

Sasori suddenly felt relieved, as if a weight had been lifted upon his shoulders, he suddenly realized, that Hidan was the perfect stress reliever every once in a while…

* * *

Trans notes:

Yamato Nadeshiko – Means the ideal Japanese woman. A woman who is meek and upholds tradition, is prepared to die with her husband if dishonour is imminent. With Naruto portraying Hinata as the ideal woman, it means that somehow, he views Hinata as a woman that is ideal in his views and well within his tastes stating that he somehow has an interest with Hinata, and no, I still don't think this would be a single pairing, it's not fun if I reveal it this early. The Naruto here has no inhibitions in his speech, often speaking and doing what he wants to, though he isn't an idiot, he thinks and does whatever he wants.

* * *

Chapter Preview:

Kakashi had been given another mission under his command, if he were to succeed, then he needed to play his cards right, he needed to plant a scenario in which, Gatou would lower his guard and trust his team to infiltrate the man's structures, the first thing that he needed to do, a reconnaissance mission for his team to find out about the true intentions of Gatou and their involvement.

Chapter Ten: Uncover

* * *

RnR dear readers!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten: Uncover

The trip to Wave was no problem, with the walk only two days worth of travel time, Kakashi would've preferred to go the ninja route but since it was an escort mission, then there was no other choice. The scarecrow Jounin looked around the office of their client, Gatou was certainly one to appreciate the finer things in life, with his carpet being very expensive velvet cloth, tiger skin covered seats and countless alcoholic beverages that Kakashi wouldn't dare buy just because of the price, a wine glass set decorated near the office table, where countless pictures were placed with Gatou along with his business partners on different vacation sceneries and his boats. The grey haired tycoon was certainly one to spend on lavish materials.

"Now that you're here, I want you take a look at the man in this photo." Gatou then raised a photo of a seemingly lazy old man that had a goatee for a beard, and moustache that connected to his beard, he had a straw hat worn on his head, and seemed to look out to the area.

"He's the leader of the bandits that are threatening my business here in wave, his name is Tazuna, and he's successfully infiltrated Nami no Kuni posing as a bridge builder."

Naruto took one good look at the man and nodded, this time, it was Sasuke's turn to speak

"How much time are you willing us to lend to finish the job?" Asked the Uchiha

"As soon as possible, the sooner the better. At least, right before he completes his bridge by the eastern harbour to Fire Country." Replied Gatou.

Kakashi then ordered his team,

"Alright, I want you three to do surveillance for today, get to know the town, and monitor any associates to this Tazuna person, and before you go…" Kakashi then held out his right hand

"Your forehead protectors, I don't want any of us to be discovered in this country that we are ninjas, that might alarm anyone associated with Tazuna or with Tazuna himself, we might never know if Tazuna would decide to make a move first."

All three nodded and gave up their forehead protectors, and also some of their gear, except a single kunai, that would be used in case of emergencies. It was a good thing that they were on boat when they were heading to Nami from the shoreline of Fire country after their walk, and it was also a big help that Gatou was generous enough port on his nearest shipyard, it gave the shinobi time a lot more ease in travelling. Except Naruto however, as he seemed not too fond of sea travel. Who knew he had sea sickness anyway?

Naruto had to admit though, being at a new country was a somewhat exciting, as he exited the room, he and his teammates walked towards town.

Once they made it to the town, the three agreed to split up to cover more ground, Naruto going to the northern section, while Sakura and Sasuke went east and west respectively.

With Naruto:

Naruto walked casually around the streets of Nami no Kuni, feeling his stomach churning, by the fact that he had just vomited his lunch again once they were on land. He felt compelled to quench his hunger. His stomach was rumbling for food, so he thought that he should first have his fill before continuing with the mission, who knows? He might encounter some info regarding this Tazuna person.

Seeing a somewhat rundown ramen shop, he thought for a second contemplating on whether he should enter or not. But his hunger took a better hold on him and couldn't resist so he went inside.

Whenever Naruto usually goes, trouble isn't exactly far behind…

With Sakura:

Sakura looked around at the different shops of Nami no Kuni, there were plenty to buy souvenirs from, but it all seemed too expensive, one keychain of a wooden carving of a dog was worth five hundred ryou.

Kindly approaching the vendor, she asked the man who was leaning against the entrance of the inside of his shop

"May I ask sir, why are your products so expensive?"

The man frowned and replied,

"A tourist eh, not particularly versed on Wave's current situation are you?"

Sakura just gave off a nod.

"You see that bastard Gatou managed to monopolize all the business deals here in Wave, that guy suddenly came here and with his band of thugs, started harassing the villagers and immediately came up to the town square and spoke to us like he owned the place."

Sakura was shocked though, their employer was a greedy power hungry bastard, bent on monopolizing a whole country, she had to deny it at first and then asked,

"But I heard that the bandits here were brought by this man named, Tazuna."

"Che, Don't believe what you hear girly, Tazuna's practically a hero by the common folk, that man has been bravely building that bridge even with Gatou's constant death threats. I just wish he completes that bridge before Gatou kills him, he's our last hope, the sooner the better." Said the man,

Sakura didn't know what to think! They were hired by a crime lord! It was against her principles to do jobs that befit a common thug! She was a shinobi! And shinobi still have honor.

"Hey, are you going to buy that?" Added the vendor

Sakura absentmindedly placed the little dog on the stall and left

With Sasuke:

Looking at the depressed state of the people, Sasuke thought in dismay upon the situation,

'_Would have been better to just kill them here and be done with it.' _Thought Sasuke, seeing as many homeless and malnutritioned men and women making makeshift houses in cardboards. As he went passed the people there, he suddenly noted two people passed by him

They were wearing Forehead protectors, something that shocked Sasuke, he did not see any other shinobi in the place that Gatou had shown them, he turned his head and saw that the men had already vanished. With that, he cursed and walked faster, with just that encounter, it might have blown their cover.

With Naruto:

A sound of shattering wood was heard and out came flying a muscular man from the dingy little ramen shop.

Naruto walked outside, chopsticks still in his mouth and cracking his knuckles

"What'd you call me… Punk!?" Asked the blonde

He lifted the man by his collar and said to his face

"What. Did. You. Call. Me?" Asked Naruto, again, asked, this time the man replied

"Fuck you shrimp! I ain't scared of no short stuff!" the man screamed,

This time, he earned another punch to the face from the blonde, if it was one thing that Naruto hated, was someone making snide remarks about his height.

Naruto then shook the man's collar and shouted

"Take that back, you bastard! I still have to experience my growth spurt! How dare you make fun of my height?" Said Naruto as he continued to shake the now dizzy man and Naruto kicked him in the shin

The man screamed in pain as Naruto let go another series of punches to the man. Pouting like a little kid while he did so.

"Um… Excuse me…"

Naruto stopped his berserker tendencies, and turned around to a woman, at least a few inches taller than him, wearing a pink kimono, long straight black hair that reached to her back and chocolate brown eyes that seemed serene. The blonde looked at her curiously

"That man that you're beating up, isn't it a bit brutal?" She asked

Naruto just pouted and turned his head, arms crossed on his chest and sulking

"Yeah well, he made fun of my height." Said the blonde. The girl chuckled lightly, a hand over her mouth

"I'm sure you'll get your growth spurt someday." She mentioned, to this, Naruto looked up and smiled

"Thanks! Ugh…"

"Haku…" The girl named Haku continued

"Yeah, thanks Haku." Said Naruto and he stood up and grinned, the man, being brought back to consciousness, wearily stood up and said to Naruto

"You'll regret this you little troll! I'll make sure Gatou's little band makes an example out of you!" The man said running

"LITTLE!?" Naruto was about to run after the man yet again until held a hand on his shoulders

"Leave him be. Petty fights aren't worth it. Don't you think so?" Asked the girl who smiled and Naruto let down his hands, and bowed his head, the pretty girl before him was right, he had no arguing with that.

"Would you like to accompany me for a walk?" Asked Haku and Naruto just nodded, as they continued to walk, Haku asked the blonde a question

"I haven't seen you around here before, what are you doing in such a washed up country?"

Naruto meanwhile, remembered what cover they needed, lest he wanted info be leaked to the man named, Tazuna. Naruto simply told a lie

"I came here for a detour before heading off again, I'm travelling right now." The blonde nonchalantly replied

Haku clasped her hands and said, "Wow… How wonderful, I'm sure you have seen a lot of towns already! What does the other towns look like?"

Naruto simply told another lie, "It's just my first time with my uncle, he's my only family left and he thought it would be best if we go out and see the world." Said Naruto and Haku nodded.

"It must be hard…" She said and Naruto looked at her with a confused stare

"Loosing your parents, I mean…" She said, Naruto just shook his head

"No, I never knew them by heart… They died even before I got close to them, I only knew their names based from what my uncle told me." Said Naruto.

"You're uncle must be very precious to you, isn't he?" She asked, Naruto just nodded his head

"Yeah, he teaches me stuff… I got to learn martial arts because of him… He's pretty cool." Replied Naruto and in some other area, Hatake Kakashi sneezed

As they turned to a corner, Haku kept asking the blonde questions, Naruto meanwhile, tried his best to come up with lies that were consistent with his first one. It was like playing cat and mouse, except that the cat was pretty, a REALLY pretty cat.

Haku then was about to separate from Naruto when she turned around and said, "It has been nice talking to you, Naruto-kun, you are the first boy I ever talked to like this. It was fun, I hope to meet you again."

Naruto nervously waved goodbye, silently giving off a sigh of relief and thanking the gods that it was finally over.

"I see you can't keep your hands off women even just for a minute, huh Naruto?"

Naruto turned his head and looked at Sakura who was fuming at the blonde. Naruto just tilted his head, he could never understand women. So he asked a question

"What?"

That question earned him a punch to the face with Sakura screaming, "PERVERT!"

Naruto had one thing on his mind, THAT HURT!

So he decided to yell at his pink haired teammate

"What the hell was that for!?"

"For being such a pervert! You already have Hinata yet you still flirt with other women!"

Naruto meanwhile went on the defensive and asked her, since he clearly did not know what she was talking about.

"What the hell are you talking about? I don't have Hinata! She's with Team Eight remember? What's gotten into you!?"

Sakura had to gripe and sigh while hitting her forehead with her palm, how could someone, so well versed in methodical combat be so… Stupid?

"Nevermind… C'mon let's go find Sasuke and go to sensei and talk to him, I want to inform him of something." Said Sakura, she needed to tell him to abort the mission now!

As soon as they saw Sasuke, immediately he ran to them and informed at what he saw

"There are ninjas in the village that we hadn't heard off." He said frowning

Naruto inwardly cursed and Sakura flinched

"There's a high chance that our cover is blown, we need to go to Kakashi and tell him what had happened."

Sasuke said, and the three nodded, they needed to go to Kakashi as soon as possible.

A few minutes of walking, the three had secretly made it back to the preferred meeting area of Hatake Kakashi. The first one to explain the situation was Sasuke then Sakura, Naruto had nothing to say, except that he was constantly pestered by one of the locals, Kakashi had an inkling suspicion though

"This is bad, our planning may have to be cut short to three days, I've got no choice…" Kakashi muttered rather loudly and the three turned their heads in curiosity

"It looks like we're going to up the ante in your training." Kakashi said and gave a smile, to this his three students nodded, feeling the tension rise, he then mentioned to the three,

"It's best to prepare before the oncoming battle, consider this mission, an A-rank, I'll send word to Hokage-sama right away. In the meantime, you three are going to train with me, Sasuke and Sakura, have you ever heard of climbing trees without using your hands?" Kakashi asked to this, Sakura and Sasuke shook their heads

Kakashi then turned to Naruto,

"Naruto, can you show it to them?"

Naruto nodded and focused chakra to his legs, he walked towards a nearest tree and began to step on the wood, he continued to walk and casually reached towards the top.

Sasuke and Sakura stood agape as Kakashi explained to them, "Gathering Chakra at one specific part of the body is hard, especially if it's on the foot part, with this training, it will teach you how to properly teach you how much chakra should be needed to be pumped and how to create a sticky coating so that you could stick to the tree. If you use more than what's needed, you'll damage the tree and you'll be repelled, if you don't use enough, you'll simply fall off."

Sasuke then looked at Naruto, he promised he'd keep up, and this exercise would be a step in getting closer to the blonde and then to Itachi, to prove his strength.

Sakura meanwhile, remained focused, she had heard Gai tell something about this being a part of her training before opening the first gate. So with resolve she held her hands together and focused on the seal.

Kakashi meanwhile, told Naruto to come down and come with him leaving Sasuke and Sakura to their training, once they were out of sight from the two, Kakashi then told his student,

"For you Naruto, I'm teaching you how to walk on water." Said Kakashi, Naruto meanwhile smirked

"With tree climbing, you were taught how to send the appropriate amount, with water walking, you'd need a constant amount. Like so." Kakashi then demonstrated. Naruto watched in fascination.

After that, Kakashi stepped out of the lake and had let Naruto handle it.

"Walk on the shallow surface first, we don't want you sinking now, do we?" Asked Kakashi as he left his student alone to monitor the rest.

Naruto's grin grew wide; he'd master this in no time.

As for the next two days, each student had their shares of success. Sakura finished the tree climbing exercise on the day she had learned about it, Sasuke came in the second day, with Naruto mastering the technique a few hours due to his Kage Bunshin. Right now, each student was practicing their own techniques, with Kakashi forcing Sasuke in training more due to manifesting the Sharingan.

With Naruto:

Naruto meditated, he sat alone on the clearing, in the lotus position. He sat, concentrating with speaking with Fuujin again, wanting to know the ability on how to activate the songs.

And immediately, he was brought to the realm of the wind god.

'_Been a long time since we talked.' The wind god said, his staff rang with the sounds of the wind hitting disturbing the chimes above the staff_

'_Teach me how to do it.' Naruto said, determination in his eyes, Fuujin smiled_

'_Then let's start the concert for the first song. Sono __Tooboe (The Howling)' With that, the gusts of winds picked up, surrounding the wind god's feet and then finally being engulfed by the winds as it howled around the field, he could not see the person that once stood in the middle, as the winds picked up the dust and surrounded the person, he could hear the noisy sound of the wind as it surged and surrounded the Fuujin. Like a powerful siren that screamed throughout the area, it blew fast and hard, Naruto couldn't believe the turbulence that the wind presented. It was unimaginable!_

'_The first song is the song of protection, all of those who chanted the name of the song shall forever be protected by the embrace of the wind god's instruments, the wind is your servant, your friend, embrace it as it embraces you. That is the verse… The verse is the substitute for your handseals, although it is a bit slow, the technique is unleashed by the last word, just remember you can set up the song before you can say the last word, but be reminded that once you break the incantation of the technique, the spell would reset making you say the spell all over again. Also, you can only use this technique when you're in the Fuutei (wind emperor) state, Fuutei can be activated once you ask me.'_

_With that, Naruto was pushed back._

With Sakura:

With the sudden change in the training, Sakura also saw fit to change her outfit for this mission, wearing a red zipped up tank top, it went nicely with her shoulder grey bracers and gray Kevlar skirt that had multiple pockets. Underneath it was a pair of black cycling shorts and fingerless gloves that was had metal plating by the knuckles. She looked combat ready.

Sakura stared at the tree before her, today this was her target, she could feel her reserves full for today. She activated her jutsu

"Doton: Tetsu no Karada Chikujou (Earth Release: Steel Body Fortification)"

Her skin then began to be surrounded by brown blotches. She opened her eyes, and the target was well within her sights, but she was not done yet, she started to concentrate again this time, she could feel her chakra being collected to her center, with a battle cry, she yelled

"Hachimon Tonkou! Daichi mon, Kaimon! Kai! (Eight Gates opening, First Gate, Initial Gate, Release)"

Sakura then felt her limitations were gone, she felt as if the countless chains around her limbs were gone, Sakura then dashed towards her target, about to test her new jutsu…

With Sasuke:

Kakashi knew exclusivity was a teacher's crime, but he made it clear to his students, each of them would receive training after Sasuke's. He knew that if they wanted to have a chance of taking down Gatou, then he would need the Sharingan and would need to construct a scenario to fool the business man

Sasuke panted, after his training with the tree climbing exercise, he could now properly send the right amount of chakra inside his body, he could feel himself being faster than before, and hit harder than before, but he still could not awaken it…

"Sasuke, don't run from fear, don't waver in it." Kakashi said his kunai drawn, again attacking Sasuke.

The Uchiha stumbled back and told his teacher, "It's instinctual that I dodge a blow that you send to me, because I know it's deadly."

"No, that's where your wrong, in order to awaken your Sharingan, you don't need to be calm, no in fact, you shouldn't be coordinated, attack me with everything you have, don't think, feel. Don't run from fear, but embrace it." Kakashi advised Sasuke

Sasuke meanwhile, dropped his stance and stood up, he took a deep breath, his eyes closed, then exhaled. As soon as he let go of the air in his lungs, he immediately opened his eyes and disappeared in a blur. Kakashi then blocked the kick Sasuke sent from above, Sasuke back flipped and gave a sweeping kick which the Jounin dodged, Sasuke then suddenly felt his adrenalin take over, as soon as Kakashi jumped back, he could see as to where Kakashi could land. Sasuke immediately reacted and ran to Kakashi's landing area. The Uchiha gave off a straight punch that Kakashi parried by standing on his right arm and then jumping. Sasuke stumbled but used the momentum to recover, he stared up and unleashed a flurry of handseals

"Katon: Housenka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Mythical Fire Flower Technique)"

A volley of fireballs headed straight to Kakashi like small bullets, the Jounin just flipped through it and immediately, Sasuke was again, near him, he could then see it, a faint pair of red scarlet irises, Sasuke was slowly awakening. Kakashi then pushed Sasuke's stomach that forced the Uchiha back.

Landing on the ground he then regained his balance and charged at Kakashi letting go a flurry of punches that refused to connect to any part of Kakashi's body. Sasuke gritted his teeth as he then grabbed four kunai from his pouch and a scroll, two kunai on his right hand, two on his left and a scroll, Unfurling it with his right hand he touched the seal and transferred one kunai from his left and caught the other one with his teeth, he then grabbed the item sealed inside his scroll. A windmill Shuriken.

"Sofushasan no Tachi! (Manipulating Windmill Triple Blades)"

Kakashi then saw it, a pair of the most feared doujutsu, and Sasuke has finally awakened it.

With Naruto:

'_Open!' _Naruto thought as the seal on his forehead glowed blue, the turbulent winds, started circling him as he then began to chant the words for the first song

"The first song is the song of protection, all of those who chanted the name of the song shall forever be protected by the embrace of the wind god's instruments, the wind is your servant, your friend, embrace it as it embraces you! Shodai no Uta! Sono Tonoboe! (The first song: The Howling)"

With that, the bottom kanji of the Hiraishin kunai glowed brightly, and surrounded Naruto like a protective blanket…

The third day:

Sakura opened the conversation for the team, they were at the clearing far from Gatou base, not sensing any prying ears around the area, Sakura spoke up,

"Sensei… Why are we doing a mission for such a despicable man?"

Kakashi replied, "This is the dark world of shinobi. We do our jobs because it's just that. We do our missions without question. We are soldiers and this is the life blood that keeps Konoha alive."

Sakura merely understood, although it was leaving a bad taste in his mouth, it was the truth, it opened her eyes that not all missions that shinobi take were noble. Virtuous ninja do not exist. Cold and calculating ninjas do. A simple truth, but a truth that was bitter to swallow.

"Well if you don't have any questions, then today's training session is over, I'm just going over to take some stroll before going back to the hideout. This time, take to the roof tops, avoid being sighted as much as possible, we don't want shinobi encounters without me now would we?" With that, he disappeared in a plum of smoke.

"Come on, let's get going and get some rest, who knows what that guy will do here." Sasuke mentioned, the two nodded.

With Kakashi:

Kakashi sighed as he sneaked pass another guard, the thrill of infiltrating one of Gatou's warehouses near the port was gone the moment he saw how lax the guards were on their duty. As soon as he saw the supplies of opium on the box, he quickly grabbed a camera and took a picture of the said cargo. He made sure there was no flash, which was terribly alarming to the guards, he then grabbed a sample of the cargo for further evidence. Thinking that it was unwise to go back the way he came from, the scarecrow Jounin immediately stepped on the surface of the sea's water and ran away from the scene, none of the people on guard duty had seen him.

Once he was away from the guarded structure, Kakashi let out a sigh of relief.

He rested his back on a tree. But suddenly, his senses were disturbed, he could feel the killer intent, resonating within the clearing by the shore.

Kakashi then immediately jumped up narrowly evading a giant cleaver, Kakashi gritted his teeth, as he saw the forehead protector of the ninja that just assaulted him.

By the man's features, he quickly recognized him.

"Oh, I never thought I'd meet you here, Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist), Momochi Zabuza." Said Kakashi landing on all fours on the tree.

"Oh? The great Copy Ninja knows me? I must say I'm honoured." Said Zabuza underneath the bandages in his mouth

"Cut the pleasantries, why are you here?" Asked Kakashi

"I'm here to prevent you bunch from killing the idiot bridge builder." Said Zabuza, swinging the giant cleaver, Kubikiri Houcho (Decapitating Carving Knife), and placed the flat part on his shoulders.

Kakashi remained silent, he didn't want any unnecessary encounters but he couldn't divulge the mission he currently had, he had no choice he was going to fight Zabuza, how ironic that he, constantly told his students to avoid any encounters yet, Kakashi was the first unlucky one to face off with a Kiri nin and not just any Kiri nin, this was Momochi Zabuza, former member of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin shu, the Kirigakure no Kijin.

Kakashi jumped in mid air and opened the Sharingan on his right eye.

"Let's do this Zabuza." Said Kakashi grabbing a kunai with his right hand.

With Team Seven:

Naruto and his team felt it, the soaring levels of killing intent and flaring discharge of chakra.

Naruto turned his head towards the area where the killing intent was strongest. As did Sakura and Sasuke.

"What was that?" Asked Sakura

Naruto gritted his teeth, there was a battle. If it meant that, then it was most likely that their sensei was involved.

"We're going there." Was his simple reply.

Sasuke merely stood there, quiet, but he agreed with the blonde, if they want to complete this mission, then it was best that the team leader would not be incapacitated or worse yet, killed.

With that, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura went towards the area where the flaring of chakra was strongest.

"Prepare yourselves guys, we're going to battle."

With Gatou:

Gatou knew that fighting ninjas were inevitable. He had already foreseen the old drunk of a bridge builder, Tazuna, hire ninjas to protect him. And had already foreseen that he too would be hiring ninja, what he did not foresee was the fact the unavailability of different missing nin. He thought hard about this, now that the stupid bridge builder had hired ninjas, he would have an excuse on how to dispose four legitimate shinobi. There was no need to pay Konoha for their services when he could just say that the team sent were killed by unexpected missing nin hired by the bandit leader.

Betrayal was one thing human nature knew a lot. After all, it was inherent for humans. Everyone is a traitor, one way or another. Loyalty was simply an illusion, to serve as a face for people to weaken their guard and gain their trust. It was not uncommon.

He stared at his hired men, mercenaries, lord-less samurai, bounty hunters, and countless other ill-educated, poorly mental functioning dolts. They were tools; they were merely a bunch of disposable objects that he sees. It was no different from hiring Missing ninja. Except these guys were dumber, and had testosterone for brains.

A smile escaped his lips, as long as he had scapegoats and the money to lure in the scapegoats, he had nothing to fear, and money was his friend, for it was happiness.

With Kakashi:

Kakashi just narrowly dodged another swing from Zabuza's gigantic blade. He ducked from a horizontal swing and quickly threw three shuriken at Zabuza. The Kiri Nin then jumped from the projectiles, but Kakashi was ready for him, with a shout of one of his jutsu,

"Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)" Kakashi said letting a stream of fire escape his lips.

Zabuza remained unfazed as he said to the copy ninja,

"You moron! In case you're wondering, I'm a shinobi from Kiri any Katon techniques won't work on me!"

Tossing his blade upwards, Zabuza let go of a series of handseals and jumped, grabbing the hilt of Kubikiri Houcho, he let the edge of his sword touch the surface of the water, Zabuza grinned as he slashed the fireball upwards while saying

"Suiton: Seppaku Zan! (Water Release: Pressure Slice)"

The stream of fire was immediately sliced in half, Zabuza stood, in the middle of the steam, the edge of his sword surrounded by a stream of water. But what caught his attention was how long the sword became, with the edge covered with water that seemed to travel in streams, the reach and height of the sword seemed to have doubled.

"Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu! (Water Clone Technique)" Yelled Zabuza, as the water churned out replicas of the said man.

"They're about one tenth of my strength, but with this, I can overwhelm you… Ninpo: Kirigakure no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Hidden mist Technique)"

Kakashi remained stationary to his spot. It was a good thing too… What Zabuza didn't know, was that he had a jutsu to counter being ganged upon. So with a series of handseals, lightning generated from his right hand, surging for a few moments, until finally, one of Zabuza's clones appeared in front of him. Kakashi was swift to react, sidestepping the blow, his right hand pierced Zabuza's right side, and lightning surged forth, shocking the clone and conducted electricity

"Raiton: Rensa Kaminari (Lightning Release: Chain Lightning)" Kakashi said and the electricity bounced from one clone to another, gathering more energy as it travelled from one clone to another, consuming every clone in the area as it grew stronger and stronger being conducted from one clone to another, and finally bounced to Momochi Zabuza instead.

The Kiri Nin howled in pain as it finally surged through it him. It felt as if one thousand needles were piercing his skin travelling up to his face. As soon as the shock ended, Zabuza stood on the ground, his weight supported by his giant cleaver.

"Damn you, I didn't know you had that kind of jutsu…" Zabuza said, Kakashi meanwhile, replied

"They call me Copy Ninja Kakashi because I have a reputation of copying more than a thousand jutsu, the chain lightning was just one of them."

Zabuza clenched his teeth, bearing the weight of Kubikiri Houcho on his shoulders, Kakashi lunged at him.

Kakashi first gave off a kick that was blocked by Zabuza with his sword. Staggering for a moment, he slid back on to the water and watch Kakashi going to his side, his kunai poised to strike on Zabuza's neck. Zabuza reacted, swinging the gigantic sword at Kakashi's torso. Kakashi's Sharingan had predicted it perfectly, as the slash connected, Kakashi turned into a puddle of water. Zabuza cursed, he had immediately copied the Mizu Bunshin!?

Kakashi appeared below the waters, a kunai in his hand, about to slash Zabuza on his chest. Zabuza reacted, he stepped back and slammed his hands on the water below his feet, Kakashi was done for. With a cry of "Suiro no Jutsu! (Water Prison Technique)"

Kakashi felt his body being surrounded by water and all of a sudden, he was incased in it.

"Now with you trapped, I would have no worries of you killing my client."

Kakashi was about to concede, that is until he heard one of his student's voice

"Fuuton: Ichuu no Kaze! (Wind Release: Point of winds)"

A rather powerful gust of wind connected to the Zabuza, as he was sent skidding back, letting go of the water prison that he held.

Tumbling on the waters of Wave, Zabuza could then see a blonde haired kid wearing a black overcoat and a red shirt, index finger pointing at him.

"Excellent timing, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura…" Said Kakashi as he stood up on the water, he was fortunate that his team was close by, all that water must have some damaging effects for his camera, and would have resulted in a jeopardized mission.

Zabuza cursed again as he saw the three genin, he stood up, clutching his stomach that was bleeding, that wind jutsu did a number on him.

"I never thought your brats were keen to respond after that." Said Zabuza

Kakashi merely replied, "Trust me, they got spunk and the balls to do these kinds of things, they are a team that doesn't want to lose."

Zabuza merely chuckled and said, "I gotta admit brats, you got balls for doing that to me, bust rest assured, next time we meet, I'LL be the one doing the killing here." Said Zabuza and with that, he vanished in a cloud of smoke.

Naruto approached his sensei and asked, "You all right, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi merely nodded and took one good look at the camera on his back pocket, it was a good thing it was still intact. That camera cost him twenty thousand ryou and he'd be damned if he had to buy another one.

As the team was about to head back towards their hideout, Kakashi had a sudden spark of intelligence, the scenario with the bridge builder would be perfect, with this he can lure out Gatou and capture him, once and for all.

Once they reached the hideout, they were checked by their employer himself

"How's the operation going so far?" Asked Gatou

"We located and noticed the pattern of Tazuna-san's daily routine, we'll strike two days from now." Said Kakashi, and Gatou grinned,

"Excellent, I'll have you notify when I will pay you." Gatou replied, he'll pay them all right, pay them with swords through their stomachs.

Naruto however was starting to rouse his suspicions of the said man, when Gatou left, he told his team

"I don't like the guy, something's telling me he's up to something." Said Naruto

Now Kakashi was certainly not one to judge, but he knew of Naruto's instinctual responses, most of them were in fact true, he didn't know if this was the result of Kyuubi being sealed in him, but it was one of the things that he can guarantee as a bad premonition.

Kakashi nodded, "Ok, we'll just have to increase our guard that man might be our employer but even I can't trust him. Just stay alert and hopefully we'll be fine." Said Kakashi.

Naruto frowned, he wanted to get out for a moment and see just what was going on, but now that the bandaged man saw his face, it was likely that the place was safe anymore, but then again, he at least had to try. Unfurling his forehead protector and placed it on the table.

"I'm going out for a walk, I just need to clear my head." Was his simple reply and with that, he left the hideout.

Outside:

Once Naruto was in town, he yet again tried to make his way to the restaurant district, he saw group of thugs, crowding on someone, deciding to see who it was, he saw a little boy, wearing a fisherman's hat where he sat in the middle, too scared of the men that surrounded him.

Naruto then did one thing what any normal person would do, beat the shit out of these thugs.

"You little shit!" Was the reply from one of the men as Naruto pounded the man's nose, breaking it, although it was bleeding, and the words were almost incomprehensive, it was no doubt that was what the man said before he turned around and with the blonde kicking a man to the face, letting him crash to the nearest wooden pole.

Naruto smiled devilishly, picking on children aren't they, well they'll see how ninjas bully people.

The men took a step back, as they saw the insanely wicked smile that the blonde had, it utterly made their knees shake with fear and decided to run away.

"Oi, kid, you all right?" Was Naruto's question.

The little boy just nodded his head and Naruto asked him another question, "What's your name?"

"Inari" Was the boy's simple reply.

Elsewhere:

Zabuza plopped down on the sofa of Tazuna's house, his wounds being treated by his apprentice, Haku. As his wounds were being treated, he told his small team

"My suspicions were true, that philandering millionaire did hire ninja." Said Zabuza

The two men who were gazing out the window, wore masks that covered their faces nodded, "And you were right, there were more than just one of them, all of them are from Konoha and Gatou didn't hire just any ninja."

Zabuza winced as the antiseptic ointment touched the cut that Ichuu no Kaze left.

"He hired the copy ninja." Continued Zabuza

Haku then asked her mentor, "What do you propose then, Zabuza-san?"

"We don't scout anymore, right now, we'll be doing guard duty, we'll protect Tazuna until he completes the bridge." Zabuza stated. His three members nodded

Underneath his mask, a smile escaped Zabuza's lips… The thought of fighting the copy ninja again bought a tantalizing taste in his mouth. It has been a long time since he experienced a good fight. During that fight, neither he nor Kakashi were able to draw out their strongest jutsu, but he guessed that he'd save it for another time, after all, where was the fun in that?

To be continued…

* * *

Well that was fun, and the shortest update I've ever had! Had a lot of time this week, just wish I'd have it the same for next week anyway, Omake time! Remember to send your ideas to my e-mail and the poster who has a good one will be recognized by me and his Omake would be presented in the Omake section!

* * *

**Afterlife…**

Naruto groaned painfully, waking up from the awful nightmare of Anko accidentally blowing up everyone, opening his eyes, he saw a cloudless blue sky, and he was sprawled on the soft, almost cottony ground, he looked around and said one thing…

"Ah, crap…"

He was dead, and so was the people in the room, he could see the rookie nine there, along with Gai's team, Kakashi, Gai, Iruka, Sandaime, Asuma, Kurenai and Anko herself.

All of them woke up with a resounding headache, and all of them told one thing as they saw the clouds

"Crap…"

"Now, now, there won't be any swearing words here." Said the voice, All of them turned around and saw someone who held a book and had a quill by his hands.

"Anko, next time, I'll do the cooking, gunpowder is not a spice." Said Iruka, Anko just told him to be quiet, because it was already embarrassing enough as it is.

Although their souls were already bare at this point. Just then, a red headed woman passed by, she looked almost as old as Anko, a hairclip on her left temple, she curiously looked to the new comers in Paradise.

Immediately, she recognized the small blonde haired whiskered boy.

"Naruto!" Said the woman, the said blonde turned around as he was immediately swooped down by the said woman and enveloped him in a sweet and tight embrace. Kakashi fainted on the spot, he knew who the person was as did the other Jounin and the Sandaime, Hinata had a jealous look in her eyes, someone older was trying to steal her Naruto-kun!

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Asked Naruto, the pretty woman, laughed lightly and excused herself

"Oh! Pardon my rudeness, dear, my name is Uzumaki Kushina, your mother!" She said happily and to this Naruto's jaw dropped.

This was Naruto's mom? The resemblance didn't fit at all! However, Kiba had one thing to say, but he wouldn't dare say it to anyone else, so he just whispered to Naruto

"Dude, your mom, is _**hot!**_" He whispered earning a powerful kick to his family jewels

"Aaauuugh! My children!" He squeaked, as he fell down like a log and clutched his ever

"Oh? Is that Naruto?"

A new voice said, this time, Kakashi who had heard that voice, fainted yet again, it was the ever powerful, Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato.

"Hey there son!" He said, Naruto knew the man as the father approached the son, his mind quickly had an interesting prank. He clutched his mother's hem tightly and hid behind her.

"Mom! Mom! Who's the weird guy that looks like me?" Asked the boy, Kushina smiled and told him,

"He's your daddy, c'mon, say hi to daddy." Said Kushina, then Naruto replied

"That can't be right! Jiji over there told me how much of a perv daddy actually was, he can't be the Yondaime Hokage, he's too far beneath that!" Said Naruto, this time, Kushina's eyes somewhat sparked, her left eyebrow twitching,

"I remember when Jiji told me stories about dad used to peep in the women's bath with his sensei." Naruto added

Kakashi meanwhile thought it was plausible, being apprenticed to Jiraiya and all, the Sandaime however, paled.

"O-Oh? Is that so? And did he tell you anything else?"

"He said that dad admired your body so much, he called you the BOMB!" Said Naruto and indeed, Kushina literally seemed to just explode!

"_**Deary**_" Kushina said, venom lacing in her voice,

"I want you to tell me about your _exploits_ with Jiraiya since you were younger, and I want them, NOW."

Kushina was ready to punch a hole in heaven's gate, Minato glared slightly at the Sandaime and then looked at the fiery aura of his wife, all the while, his son was unnoticed at the back, grinning like a maniac

'_How's that for revenge?' _Naruto thought… All the while as he watched his own father being the whipped dog he is…

Saint Peter gave off an exasperating sigh, nope, it wasn't their time yet… Well maybe in a few years, but until then, he hoped that a mishap of this proportion wouldn't happen again.

* * *

Jutsu Section:

Shodai no Uta, Sono Tooboe (The first Song, The Howling)- Rank- ???- A technique bestowed by the wind god, this technique allows the user to be protected by the winds, to act as like an ultimate defense. Can only be accessed during Fuutei

Sofusashan no Tachi (Manipulating Windmill Triple Blades)- C rank- A technique that allows the user to change the angle and direction of the attack of any thrown projectile, Commonly used in conjunction with Sasuke's Ryuuka no Jutsu (Dragon Fire Technique)

Katon: Housenka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Mythical Fire Flower Skill)- C rank- Releases a volley of flames from the mouth, could scatter and rapid fire depending on the user's use for it.

Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Skill)- C Rank- Releases a large fireball at the target.

Suiton: Seppaku Zan (Pressure Slice)- A rank- A jutsu that allows water to increase the pressure by constantly increasing the stream flow, making the water, able to cut even steel. It can increase the range of any weapon.

Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu (Water Clone Technique)- C Rank- A clone made of water, has one tenth of the original strength of the wielder.

Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Technique)- C rank- A technique that allows the ninja to hide beneath the mist, for someone who has mastered the art of silent killing, this is the perfect jutsu for Zabuza.

Raiton: Rensa Kaminari (Lightning Release: Chain Lightning)- B rank- offensive, a technique that sends electrical pulses to the enemy, when one enemy is hit, it bounces to the nearest chakra source that it doesn't recognize.

* * *

Well that's it, well anyway, on to preview!

The mist envelops the bridge, all hopes, faith and dreams rely on it, Naruto is reluctant to fight it, but is forced to, all the while, a new enemy looms

Chapter eleven: Betrayal


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter eleven: Betrayal

Naruto was currently treating the little boy named Inari to a nice serving of kebabs, damn ramen cost four hundred ryou per bowl and he wasn't about to tempt himself and waste his money on something he could get the feel of the moment and get lost in it. So he went with barbecue, it was still pricey but it was easier on the wallet. As he happily ate his share, he saw the little boy, looking down on the ground, and his share was not yet eaten. Curious, he asked the little kid,

"Oi, kid, what's wrong?"

Inari just stared at his barbecue kebab and then said,

"You should have just left me…" Was his simple reply

Naruto then hit him in the head while muttering, "Idiot."

"What the hell was that for!?" Asked Inari

Naruto replied non-chalantly, "If I left you there, then you could've sported more bruises than now or worse, be thankful, kid."

Inari snapped at him, "Shut up! What do you know!?"

Naruto remained silent as Inari tossed the food on the ground. He continued, "It's now like your dad died or anything!"

This time, Naruto hit him hard, square on the head an annoyed expression showing on his face

"YOU STUPID BRAT! THAT SINGLE STICK COSTS FIFTY RYOU!"

This, he then added, "SO YOU HAD A BAD LIFE, BOO MOTHERFUCKING HOO! IT'S NOT LIKE YOU HAD NO PARENTS TO DEAL WITH!"

Inari remained quiet, as he just went in the opposite direction and just ran, stupid ungrateful kid…

He turned his head in time to see countless thugs were surrounding him, Naruto merely raised an eyebrow as he looked at each and everyone of their ugly-as-sin faces and body odour that reeked from one end of the street to another.

"You little mongrel, you're gonna pay for what you did to my little brother!" One of the thugs said, Naruto meanwhile in a sour mood replied to them rather harshly

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING LITTLE YOU BUNCH OF SMELLY COCKROACH INFESTED CAVEMEN!? I OUGHTA SLAM YOUR FACES ON MY FOOT AND MARK EM WITH MY SHOES SO THAT I'LL BE ABLE TO LOOK AT YOU EASIER!"

"You're dead you little shit!" One of the thugs replied, charging at the blonde, little did they know of how much trouble they were in for now. It was high time Naruto had to do some venting from his stress.

The blonde cracked his knuckles and gave a mischievous smile… And all of the said men had shivers running down their spines. Uzumaki Naruto will not take shit from anybody and he sure as hell won't be taking it now.

On another part of town, Sakura was discussing with herself the consequences of being a shinobi.

'_In the shinobi world, there is neither black nor white, our judgement, our beliefs, should all be grey.'_

She thought about it, it made her sick to her stomach just thinking about it, maybe she should have listened to class more, that or the guidance councillor should have been more strict with his teachings.

But alas, here she was, she just can't get over the fact of being a true shinobi, a hired killer, a mercenary.

It was a fact that she could no longer avoid, she was a ninja, and what ninjas do, must be for the sake of the village. She then remembered what the wise Hokage said to them during one of his visits…

'_I kill so that others may live.'_

It was a barely audible whisper, but it was understandable enough to some of them, you are forced to this because it is the lifeblood of the village, without it, many would die, from starvation, disease, poverty.

It was necessary.

Sakura felt another presence as she turned to a corner, she could feel it was more prominent than the rest, more defined, silently, she activated her Steel Body Fortification, but only stopped midway when three senbon pierced her neck.

Sakura stumbled, her technique cancelling almost immediately, weakly she looked ahead and saw a person, with long black hair, tied into a bun except her bangs, wearing a traditional outfit for ninja, but what defined the person was the white porcelain mask that had the insignia of one prominent village…

"Kiri…" She mumbled as she fell down on the ground, the last thing that she heard before completely blacking out where the words, "I'm sorry…"

Then… Darkness.

Sasuke:

Sasuke stared on the image looking back at him as it rippled in the water.

The Uchiha frowned as he remembered that cursed night.

The night when he lost EVERYTHING, his family, his clan, and admittedly with a pang of disgust, his own brother. It was no wonder why he had felt so angry, Itachi shattered his world, his image of his clan, the people that he clung to. It made Sasuke looked disdainfully at himself as he recalled how much he idolized his brother, he tossed a small pebble at his mirror image and closed his eyes, the water rippling from the small object and distorted the person looking back at him.

He suddenly opened his eyes, when he felt a rising chakra coming his way; he then activated his new found power

"Sharingan!"

The leaves rustled, Sasuke knew there was no wind so it gave the impression that someone unfamiliar was closing in on him, he readied his Kunai and Shuriken, as he steeled his resolve to fight.

Adrenalin was pumping in his system like a drug that stimulated a natural high, he felt it coursing through his veins, making him feel stronger, faster, and more perceptive. As soon as he saw the three senbon heading his way, he immediately let loose a flurry of shuriken from his left hand and then the pair of kunai from his left, the shuriken intercepting the needles and the kunai flying straight to his attacker, the attacker hopped back from a tree branch that she had stepped on earlier, but Sasuke was not one to stop and let go a series of handseals,

"Katon: Housenka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Mythical fire flower skill)" He shouted peppering the canopy up above with small fireballs. The assailant nimbly dodged the attack and jumped down into the grassy plain below, where she stood against the raven haired Uchiha staring intently at him with Sharingan eyes blazing.

"You got some nerve going after ninja from Konoha, Kiri nin. Especially one from the Uchiha clan." Sasuke said, his gaze was as cold as steel as ever.

"I never thought that I would face someone from that tragic clan… But a mission is a mission, and my mission would be to protect the bridge builder, I cannot allow you to kill him." The hunter nin mentioned, Sasuke merely frowned and said,

"Then it's nothing personal." Said Sasuke, dashing towards Haku, his Sharingan eyes starting to spin as it began to predict the body movements of the hunter nin before him.

The hunter nin stepped back, she knew the effects of the doujutsu, the Uchiha would not only use his Sharingan to detect her moves, but it would also give a hypnotizing effect, allowing the user to manipulate his opponent with just a simple glance, forcing ot their secrets, and copy all of their most valuable moves.

But it was unlucky for the Uchiha, because right now, she was the more lethal weapon…

"Hyouton: Aka Dosu (Ice Release: Bloody dagger)"

She then pierced her palm with one of her senbon, and out came a small trickle of blood the life giving fluid flowed out of her hand it then landed on her other palm and began to expand, slowly crystallizing and took the form of a single edged knife.

Sasuke wondered at first why he couldn't copy the technique, but soon dismissed it as he grabbed one more kunai from his pouch.

He then jumped up, flipping in the air, the deadly blade atop his head; the hunter nin merely anticipated the decent of the kunai and did a horizontal swipe upwards, cutting through the metal like a piece of paper, Sasuke was shocked, and immediately, he stepped back as the hunter nin motioned for a stab to his chest, narrowly avoiding the deadly blow.

Sasuke then noticed that the small dagger began to expand, crystallizing further and turned to little spikes that seemed to come out from each part of the cold blade.

"Hijutsu: Kongo Chiri (Secret technique: Diamond Dust)"

The scarlet dagger then shattered to small, tiny pieces that seemed to sparkle like glitter with the rays of the sun.

The mist like tiny pieces of ice caressed a small leaf, that was then torn to shreds, Sasuke was startled, falling back not to be hit by the glittering mist.

'_This is a lethal technique, __he shatters the ice to almost micro level and uses his chakra to control and sharpen it, it's like an anti-coagulating drug, if I inhale a small amount of this, my lungs would be torn to shreds…' _Sasuke thought as the mist began to whiplash towards him. Sasuke reacted by stepping further back,

Sasuke needed a plan, something to counter the technique, but as soon as he was about to use his new technique, he was stopped by the voice of his rambunctious teammate.

"Sasuke! I can't find Sakura anywhere! Where is she!?"

The hunter nin seemed to stop as she had heard that voice, Sasuke, was immediately alerted by this, as soon as he looked at Naruto, he turned back his eyes to the Hunter nin, Sasuke inwardly cursed… The Hunter Nin attacked Sakura!

The hunter nin meanwhile, knew that she could probably take on the two genin, but also run the risk of defeat, after all, even if she was stronger, she was still one person, she wouldn't be able to take down the blonde enigma and the last Uchiha at the same time.

She needed to retreat for now, as she felt another presence about to approach her.

Sasuke glared at her icily and said to her, "You…"

Before he could finish his sentence, the assailant dissolved into a puddle of water, getting away from the area where the two boys were.

Sasuke immediately ran towards his teammates and grabbed him by the arm.

"Oi! What's the big idea, teme!?" Asked the blonde, Sasuke ignored the insult and said to him,

"We need to find Sakura, now!" He said and both boys jumped from treetop to treetop.

Four Hours later:

It was already dark, yet, there were still no signs of Sakura anywhere, Naruto was getting worried…

"Fucking pink haired, goddamn make up wearing bitch! Where the hell are you!?"

Well… To a certain extent…

Scanning anything for a sign of the pinkette, the irate Naruto noticed something by a small alleyway, a small strand of pink,

Naruto immediately raced to the area, his heart pounding faster and faster as he approached, and immediately felt his heart stopped for a minute seeing Sakura lying atop of a pile of garbage, sprawled on the ground, unconscious and three senbon sticking out of her neck.

'_SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!'_

Naruto cursed, as he went down and kneeled by Sakura's side, he began to grab her and pull out the three senbon lodged at her neck.

Naruto panicked when he noticed that Sakura wasn't breathing, he checked her pulse… There was none…

In his frustration, the blonde punched the ground near Sakura's face, the ground the punch left a small crater on the ground as his fists bled from the action. He couldn't believe it, Sakura was dead, all thoughts ran into his head, ranging from thoughts of killing the assailant to blaming himself for not being there earlier. He and Sakura may not have gotten along very well but she still meant something, she was a teammate, a comrade, somewhat a friend… Naruto couldn't help but feel mortified at what was happening.

Sasuke came a few minutes later, seeing the fallen form of Sakura and a kneeling Naruto his fists shaking as it continued to bleed. Somehow, from the look of Sasuke's shocked expression, immediately, flashes of the night of the massacre came through his mind, a literal sea of corpses, dead relatives, friends, everywhere littered on the grounds that the Uchiha clan used to live, Sasuke clutched his head tightly as he kneeled down and screamed…

"It's just like back then…" The Uchiha mentioned, he curled into a fetal position as the relapse was beginning to trigger…

Takamagahara:

"This was not supposed to happen!" Bellowed the god of the storm, Susanoo

The furious god slammed his fist down on the table that held the crystal ball that Amaterasu had placed in the middle. Some of the deities shuddered as the ball almost fell out of balance.

"It was supposed to be the other way around, damn it!" He continued, his temper was rising furiously

"Do not be angered so easily, dear brother…" The voice said, Susanoo focused his vision to one of his siblings, it was the calm and often stoic Tsukuyomi, the storm god palmed his forehead and shook his head, he did NOT need this now.

"Remember for every scenario, Aneue has a purpose… A plan." Was Tsukuyomi's reply

"And for days, Amaterasu has not once informed us about it! We are supposed to turn this world for the better not to plunge it into chaos as was envisioned by our _dear_ sister!" Susanoo mentioned.

"This world was created by us, descendants of Izanagi, to show proof to our father that we too, can create and harmonize the world." Said Ame-no-Uzume, the goddess of revelry.

"And even Amaterasu does not want to destroy the hard work that all of us had put in it." Said Omoikane, god of wisdom

"Susanoo, calm down, as one of the elder gods residing here, you should have faith with your sister more." Fuujin chastised the storm god, who idly looked at him and said,

"You are not involved in this, yet you chose that boy to be your vassal, what is your plan, exactly?" Asked the storm god

"I feel I have no reason to discuss this with you, right brother?" Fuujin turned his attention to Raijin who was silent in the whole conversation

"I would rather not answer that question, I don't want a part in any of this." Mentioned Raijin as he crossed his arms and looked away from his brother.

Susanoo's anger was about to explode when suddenly, Amaterasu came into view, all in her radiant form.

"You!" Susanoo pointed to his sister,

"You better have a good reason why you have let the string of fate run its course to one of our keys to destiny!" Said Susanoo, Amaterasu replied

"Why simple dear brother, it is not a mere question of fate that has intervened, rather, this was planned from the beginning." Said Amaterasu as she then pointed her white elegant finger at the crystal ball that showed the face of a dead girl.

"That child, will soon live…" Said Amaterasu, with that, Fuujin disappeared in a strong gust of wind.

Amaterasu looked intently on the fallen form of Sakura, and she smiled, as a chosen of the tenkaijin (heavenly beings), she will not simply die, she will never allow it…

With Naruto:

It was very surreal, unimaginable, to think that the first time that they got a C-rank mission could become disastrous! They didn't know that the enemy hired ninja to stop them! This should've become a B-rank in the least! Naruto wanted to control his anger, angry at the person who did this, and angry at himself for being useless at this moment…

'_I can't do anything…'_ Naruto thought, his eyes shutting from his mortifying realization.

'_I failed..'_ Thought Naruto, if he had kept watch of his teammates, then this could have been avoided, that hunter nin wouldn't have done this to Sakura!

'_Worrying over such simple things will get you nowhere…' _Fuujin's voice echoed in his head

Naruto replied angrily, _'W-what!?'_

'_I meant that saying things like 'I should have been there' would have been useless anyway… In the end, there was nothing you could've done. You are only one person, you can't save everybody…'_

Naruto gritted his teeth, as Fuujin continued

'_For every success, there is a failure, for every life… There equates death, it has been a long cycle __death is as natural as life is, it's the only absolute thing in this world. Now come, we have much to do…'_

Naruto remained there, as his view changed from the sorrowful area of his teammate's death, to the whimsical windmill plains of his mind…

'_Energy flows like a river, it is nearly endless, it encompasses everything that is matter. And energy flows in different forms, for you, it is the chakra within you, it is your infinite source of energy, for the tailed beasts, it's youki, for us… This is our source.' _Fuujin then merely raised his hand with his elbow, a flow of white energy escapes from his hands going up into the endless sky

'_Just what are you…' _Naruto intervened, Fuujin merely smiled and said to his vassal,

'_I'm teaching you on reviving that pink haired teammate of yours.' _Said Fuujin, Naruto at first looked shocked, and then frowned as he asked the wind god

'_How is this related?'_

Fuujin replied,

'_For you to have a basic understanding on how to control the energy that we have, tenki.'_

Naruto clenched and unclenched his fists now fully aware of what was needed to be done… Reviving Sakura

'_Tenki is not supposed to be handled by humans because of its immense potency to the human body, __a small dose could literally turn the human to ash.'_

Naruto felt a lump in his throat go down. Fuujin then let the white energy dissipate slowly into the atmosphere, Fuujin then pointed to Naruto's forehead

' _With you, it's different, thanks to the Seals of the four cardinal directions, gathering tenki won't be potent, it'll filter out some of its effects, but let me tell you this…'_

The wind god touched Naruto's forehead with his index finger and the character for north glowed in luminescent blue…

'_Tenki would have other effects to the one who will be imbued as well, tenki is a doubled edged sword, you can expect it to do something for you, but it will also do something similar to a side effect of a drug, it maybe good, it maybe bad, just be aware of that fact.'_

Naruto nodded, Fuujin held him by the shoulder and asked him,

'_Are you prepared?'_

Naruto merely said to him,

'_Do you think I have a choice?'_

Fuujin held his stomach as he bellowed in good laughter, he was right in selecting his vassal. The boy was a fine specimen of a human.

With that, Naruto's vision went back to reality, on the small alley, it was already dark, it was starting to rain, Sasuke was on the side, his hands holding on his head murmuring about that night, Naruto was on Sakura's side, who was paler than a sheet of paper, he looked at his hands, now glowing in white, tenki pouring out of his system like smoke from a cigarette, it felt warm, like chakra but it was more soothing, it felt… Somewhat addictive, there was no pain, on the contrary, it felt_ good._

Naruto obeyed the voice in his head as he placed his hands on Sakura's stomach…

'_To hell __with the consequences!'_

Naruto knew that there were chances that Sakura might not be the same Sakura as she was now…

But he also knew that it was better than being a team with just three of them… He'd be damned if he was going to throw away all of _that_ team dynamics than be paired of with another stranger. Sakura was strange, but aside from that, she had a resolve to seek strength, it was one thing that made him proud of his teammate, Sakura wanted to grow a spine, and he would not let that all go to waste… No. She deserved her new life, a life of her own path, of her own accord.

As the tenki flowed out of him and into Sakura, it enveloped her with the luminous white light that permeated from Naruto entering her system through her nose, her torso jolted up and immediately her eyes opened

Sasuke stood up, shocked at what Naruto was doing how the flow of the white energy seemed to give life to his dead teammate. It stunned him seeing Sakura's facial colour was being brought back from the pale skin that it was once just a few minutes ago.

Her breathing returned, a half conscious Sakura looked at her teammates and weakly smiled…

"What are you guys so shocked about?"

After that, she fainted with Naruto and Sasuke smiling slightly and said at the same time…

"Just the fact that you came back to us."

A few days later:

Kakashi couldn't ignore the situation any longer. Just a few days ago, he was assaulted by none other than the infamous demon of the hidden mist, Momochi Zabuza, and a day after that, Sakura almost had a near death experience from a hunter nin from kiri. He couldn't risk it any longer, he knew they were walking on a tight rope, he had to act now, or risk further dangers into the lives of the only team that he had passed since doing the bell test.

So he needed to get two birds in one stone. So formulated a plan, and discussed this with his team, as the commander of genin squad seven, Kakashi had to be frank and needed not to linger at any thoughts for a long time. Team Seven meant business when it was ninja stuff, something Kakashi was proud off meaning all the three pupils he had were serious about being a soldier of the leaf. But even they weren't strong enough to handle them, no, they were still young, they still don't have the experience that he has and if at all possible, he wished to avoid it to a much later date, and hopefully, not one of them would die.

'_Another day, another life in the trenches…' _Thought Kakashi giving off a sigh as he viewed Sakura who was now prepping up on her own, it was time for payback…

Sakura on the other hand made it clear on her awakening that she would not let something like that happen again, she would not worry her team mates, not anymore, one mistake was enough.

"Oi, Sakura, you sure you're okay?" Asked Naruto, his left eyebrow was raised, indicating that he would not believe her, Sakura replied with a simple sucker punch to Naruto…

Naruto felt the air leave his lungs as he mentioned in pain, "Yep… She's okay!"

The blonde then collapsed on the floor like a sack of potatoes as he clutched his stomach tightly.

"Anymore questions?" Asked the irate Sakura, Sasuke meanwhile, shook his head vigorously, Sakura smiled simply and said,

"Good."

Kakashi gave off a sigh, he just hoped that his team wouldn't kill each other first before they made it to chuunin.

Kakashi gave the orders to move out, Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto had spread out.

Kakashi's plan was simple, since he had three under experienced genin it would be better if the element of surprise was at their hands, instead of direct confrontation, they would go and settle for an ambush. Based on the information that the three genin had given Kakashi, there are possibly four or more shinobi from the opposing squad, and the three genin should be capable enough to handle anyone under the command of Momochi Zabuza, the three would isolate the demon of the hidden mist's subordinates while he handles Zabuza himself, the cycloptic jounin explained it to Gatou who agreed to the idea with a smile, he knew the bridge builder would be there, he just needed the slippery businessman to be there as well in order to apprehend him and hopefully, get rid of his hired thugs that were running amuck in the small town.

With Naruto:

Naruto jumped from treetop to treetop, as he skilfully flipped and landed on a tree branch, the blonde immediately saw the slash marks on the trunks of the trees and a slain wild boar by the forest floor, the blonde felt like ignoring it for a moment but knew that something was not right, as he turned his head around, he almost passed by a small house, and saw a woman being carried away by three men that all had swords, with the third one about to slice a familiar boy that Naruto instantly knew, it was that brat named Inari that he saved just a few days ago. With speed only ninja could posses, Naruto jumped into the fray, his fist cocked back about to deal the blow.

The man that stood before Inari smiled, it was one of the things he had enjoyed doing, killing off innocent bystanders, to him, good and evil were not a matter that he would just debate himself over and over again, if the existence of good and evil were present, then how can one explain the existence of ninja villages that make money out of stealing, killing and destroying lives? So to hell with the consequences!

As he was to swing down the sword that would end the life of the bridge builder's grandson, he felt a sickening punch that shattered his jaw connect fiercely as he was forcefully pushed away and stumbled on the ground. Holding his uneven jaw, the thug turned his head down, looking at the boy who had eyes that were piercing through his very soul, as it showed the expression of sheer rage.

"How many times do I have to beat the shit out of you until all of you fucktards come to your senses?" Naruto griped, cracking his knuckles, immediately the three hired swordsmen recognized the blonde brat.

"IT'S THAT LITTLE HELLRAISER!" Said one of the men holding the woman down.

"KILL THAT DAMN BRAT!" Mentioned the other, Naruto gave off a shit eating grin as he stepped forward

"Better cover your eyes kid… It ain't gonna' be pretty." Said Naruto motioning for Inari to stand behind him as he dashed at the men at full speed. The three men, felt shocked as they noticed how fast and accurate the blonde was in closing the distance between them, the first swordsman tried to give of a horizontal swipe of his sword which Naruto easily evaded with a duck. The blonde seeing the opening, sent a vicious uppercut at the first thug followed by a spin kick sending him careening towards the lake's waters. The blonde didn't stop there, as he back flipped and landed on thug number two's shoulders. The mindless hit man staggered from the weight as he felt Naruto jump from his shoulders and kicked him on his cheek, the blonde then went to the final swordsman who was cradling his cheek due to Naruto breaking his jaw earlier, he raised his sword and pointed it at the woman who was being held in his arms, Naruto meanwhile, smirked as he vanished from the sight of the final thug only to have his arm lobbed off of him as he saw a blade, light blue in colour raised and the blonde who had the sword upwards, the thug screamed in agony as he muttered the words that brought terror to the hearts of different people, they were warriors of the shadows,

"…SHINOBI!" He screamed as his face was slammed with Naruto's fist knocking him out.

"Be thankful that's the only thing I took from you." Said Naruto, as he grabbed the Konoha forehead protector and tied it around his neck.

"A shinobi of Konoha would uphold honour for the strong!" Said the blonde as he gave a thumbs up to Inari

"Don't have problems with that now, do you?" Said Naruto as he jumped away from the scene with the two wet men dragging themselves out of the water and running like there's no tomorrow.

With Sakura and Sasuke:

They were the first to arrive at the bridge, it was misty, and judging by the thickness and the discharge of the chakra, it was a technique for the leader of the Kiri nin to conceal and protect both the bridge builder and the shinobi themselves, Sakura and Sasuke were curious though, Naruto has yet to arrive…

"Well, well, well, look what we have here Gozu…" Said the voice

"Two greenhorns out to play ninja, Meizu…" Said the other one, by the tone of their voices, they were certainly mocking the two Konoha Shinobi.

"Sakura, be on your guard." Said Sasuke, his back was against Sakura, a kunai in his right hand, he held it tightly, as did Sakura, with the girl replying

"Yeah, yeah, you watch my back, I'll watch yours." Said Sakura simply, and Sasuke smirked, activating his sharingan

"Don't die." Was his simple demand, Sakura looked at him and smirked

"Not planning on it, Sasuke." Said Sakura as the two identical kiri nin, appeared before them, both were wearing masks and had the slashed insignia of Kiri on their forehead protectors

"Missing-nin…" Sakura muttered, Sasuke smirked, a challenge? He'll gladly comply!

"Gozu, you take the girl, I'll take this one instead!" Meizu answered as he unfurled his left hand that revealed a clawed metallic hand brandishing it and heading towards Sasuke, Meizu went for a horizontal swipe, Sasuke immediately jumped from the attack and countered with a leg drop, Meizu blocked with his metal claws, Forcing the Uchiha to back flip and unfurled a series of shuriken at Meizu. Meizu, again with his weapon, blocked it easily scattering it away like flies, with his attention drawn from the shuriken, the half of the demon brothers did not notice Sasuke already finishing his set of handseals…

"Katon: Enka Fuubakushougan (Fire Release: Flame Seal Restrain Strike Sphere)"

Meizu stopped in his tracks as he felt heavy, the floor below him starting to crack with the air around him starting to feel hot…

With Sakura:

"Keh… I hate hitting girls…" Gozu said brandishing his right arm, a clawed arm, similar to his brother, made itself visible now, however, it was placed on his right arm

"I'll just make this quick…" Said Gozu, gathering chakra into his right arm, the claw glowed a incandescent blue color, as he let the claw slide from the ground, creating slash marks on the ground, Gozu dashed at Sakura, who immediately went to her stance, Gozu had within seconds, closed the distance between him and Sakura, who stepped back as the claw barely even reached her clothes, Sakura then immediately spun around a spinning kick making it's way to Gozu's temple. The masked nin jumped back as Sakura landed, a forceful wind surrounding her, she landed with her right leg out stretching to the side, her left leg in a squatting position and her right arm, supporting her stand, as she said smirking at her opponent,

"Konoha Senpuu… (Leaf Whirlwind)"

Gozu grinned in his mask and said to her, "looks like you can fight, little girl."

Sakura haughtily replied, "Fight? I can do more than just fight!"

She then disappeared from Gozu's eyesight, instantly appearing on top of him, a fist cocked back and about to hit him, Gozu stepped back immediately as the fist almost connected with his head by mere centimetres

"I can pound you on the ground whenever I wish!" Said Sakura going after Gozu who stepped back further to avoid her hits

'_If it connected, then I'm sure it could've been fatal.' _Thought Gozu, Sakura going after him, flanking him with offensive punches left and right, forcing the masked kiri nin on the defensive, not being able to have a chance to counter.

'_Shit! __Every time she punches, her other fist was cocked back, meaning she can perform a good counter to any attack I make with a punch! Her form is excellent!' _The Kiri Nin thought, as Sakura continued to go after him like a rabid dog chasing a slice of raw meat.

Gozu forced chakra under his feet and jumped back, the result was an increased distance between him and the pink haired Konoha nin.

"Sakura stopped as Gozu launched three kunai from his left hand, Sakura dodged the kunai and another was launched at her, She deflected it with her own kunai, Gozu smirked as he brandished his right arm again, this time, he pushed a single button near his elbow, and with a clicking sound, he heard the Missing nin utter the name of the technique

"Ninpo: Kazama no Yaiba (Ninja art: Bladed Windmill)"

Four rod like sticks automatically jumped from the forearm of Gozu, and chakra began to surround the rods as it began to rotate on the forearm.

"Prepare yourself girl, no one has ever survived from my windmill. You won't be the first." Gozu then spread his legs and swung his right arm back, as if he was about to throw a discus.

Sakura prepared for the worst yet, standing there in one place as if to know what this new technique was.

Gozu fired his windmill blade at the pinkette, it gave off a resounding buzzing noise as it headed towards her. Sakura reacted by jumping up, She used a summersault to gracefully avoid the object, Her view went back to Gozu, unbeknownst to her, the windmill blade pivoted its direction back, and immediately, it began to pick up the pace back managing to graze Sakura's back.

Like an electric jolt, Sakura felt paralyzed as she fell, the attack was painful, it STINGED, she fell on the ground, favouring her shoulder where the tip of the cut felt.

The weapon went back sitting itself on the arm of Gozu as it spun again, Gozu smirked.

"One of my windmill's abilities, strong counteraction."

"This weapon has a small mechanism at its centre re-arrange its trajectory and use the chakra that was stored there as fuel. The longer it is separated from me, the stronger and faster it gets."

Sakura clenched her teeth for a moment, as she stepped back again when Gozu threw the weapon once again. The weapon whizzing pass through her when she dodged by a mere centimetre, Sakura then closely watched the blade as it danced in mid air.

Gozu instantly dashed at Sakura who was distracted by the throwing weapon.

Sakura spun around, hearing footsteps approaching, as she turned around, she activated her jutsu

"Doton: Tetsu no Karada Chikujou! (Earth Release: Steel body fortification)"

Immediately, her jutsu triggered, protecting her body from any physical strike. The Iron claws of the kiri nin slid through as an ear piercing screech was heard, sparks flew everywhere as the claw hit Sakura's right arm, swiping fast to her shoulder

"Bad move, dumbass!" Sakura said, punching the shocked nin to his face, with the strength of her jutsu increased, she was capable of cracking his skull, Gozu swung his outstretched right arm back and used poured chakra into the metal and used it as a shield. Gozu couldn't withstand the impact however, as he was thrown back by the force of the punch by ten metres.

Sakura was about to go after the man when she felt something slice her shoulder, even though she had he jutsu activated, the chakra still managed to penetrate her skin.

'_What!?' _Sakura asked looking shocked at her bleeding side, as she favoured it with her right hand…

"It seems that your jutsu isn't immune to chakra based attacks, I wonder… Which one of us will leave this area alive?" Gozu said, as he yet again gathered chakra from the spinning object in his arm, making it spin faster, and then he hurled it at Sakura, Sakura looked like she didn't know what to do, like a lost puppy in a big city, perhaps, she had to do this skill for now…

Sakura closed her eyes as the windmill came closer and closer to her, if she couldn't avoid it… Then she had to change the trajectory of the blade, but to do that, she had to focus a lot of her chakra to her only technique to form a shield bubble to become immune to any attack, she doubted she had THAT much chakra, but maybe, with the help of the technique that Maito Guy taught her, she could do that and hopefully, distract the man that she was facing, there was no choice, she has to break the limit.

"Hachimon Tonkou , Daichi mon: Kaimon, Kai! (Eight Gates Opening, First gate: Limit gate, Release)"

The ground below Sakura sunk, as fissures began to surround her feet, her eyes opened, a small orb of light surrounded her as the spinning chakra windmill tried to pierce the bubble but seemed to deflect instead, Sakura then cocked her right hand back, pure chakra gathering in it as she said out loud.

"Satsugeki Bukouken (Killing Drama Dance Wild Fist)"

A streak of flames left her wake…

With Sasuke:

Meizu did not know what had just happened, but he knew that he felt paralyzed… and _hot…_ As in help me, I'm burning alive hot, He didn't know how, but somehow, a large fireball dropped from the sky and consumed him in it.

Sasuke on the other hand, smirked, somehow, burning one of the hunter nin's comrades alive made it satisfying for him, it felt like justice was served as he turned around, he heard a loud sound coming out of the flames

**BANG!**

Without even a fracture of a second, Sasuke felt pain on his right shoulder as he thought something pierced his skin from the back, he looked at his shoulder and saw the small hole that was pierced by something small and went through the other side. He clutched his right shoulder in pain, he angrily looked around and saw Meizu there, standing up with only a few burning marks on his face with his right hand outstretched, at the top of the hand was a small hole that seemed like smoke coming out.

"Ninpou: Tepou Rendama (Ninja art: Rapid Bullet Piston)"

"I see… Even though you can predict my moves, it does not mean that your body is as fast to react… You've just found your worst opponent."

"H-How did you…?"

"Come out alive? Why it's simple, this cape is a heat resistant cloth; I made the right choice of wearing this against Konoha Shinobi… I always need to prepare." Said Meizu. Sasuke merely looked at him, as another round metal pellet flung and lodged itself on Sasuke's foot.

"Bad match up kid…" Said Meizu, Sasuke spat back…

"You haven't seen anything yet."

What followed next was a myriad metal strings exploding from all directions from where Meizu stood. Sasuke, being shot in the right shoulder, used his left arm instead, and fired a volley of shuriken one after another changing the direction of each projectile based to his own liking. Meizu was stunned for a moment, as he suddenly realized, all along, that the Uchiha brat had set up trap after trap, the flames of his technique was the first, the boy was fast enough to get away from a pre made fire jutsu and then without him even noticing it, he planted this trap on the ground that it went almost completely oblivious to him.

As the flow of the metallic strings entangled themselves on Meizu, Sasuke then humped, flipping in the air and capturing the metal wires landing gracefully on the ground. Sasuke staggered for a bit as the pain surged to his left foot, Sasuke gritted his teeth and forced his right shoulder to move, forcing his hands to do the appropriate seals with the Kiri nin bound by the hands, he would not be able to aim properly, he pulled the strings together, bit one of the metal wires and began to do handseals ending it with the seal of the tiger,

"Haven't I told you that I'm wearing a flame resistant cape?" Asked Meizu who was smirking beneath his mask. Sasuke replied

"I know… But what if I burn you from the inside instead?" Sasuke asked, as he said the words of his technique

"Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)"

Streams of flames streaked from the metal wirings that was tightly stretched to its limit, fire travelled through the small line like a fuse coated in oil, it drove straight to Gozu, as he became engulfed in flames.

With Naruto:

Naruto arrived, a few minutes delayed from his designated point, he had arrived to another part of the bridge, it was desolate, he was sure Kakashi was on another bridge as well, he would have been a whole lot earlier had Kakashi informed him of the task that the Jounin had given him.

His task was to create numerous traps around the beach and near the waters of the bridge, so that if Gatou does try to get in the way, the traps would immediately trigger, it would notify them and let them know. Sakura and Sasuke would act as decoys infiltrating the bridge while Kakashi manages Zabuza, the small factor that seemed to fault this plan was the hunter nin, who had no one to face off, which meant that Naruto would be the one to fight him, while he was honoured to fight a hunter nin, he felt as if he was no where near the calibre of his opponent.

As the mist began to thicken he could feel the rising and falling of chakra on his back, he assumed that Sakura and Sasuke were fighting their own opponents, he glanced back to the other side, about to walk forward when a voice made him stop.

"That is as far as you go." The voice mentioned, Naruto kept silent and retreated his advancing foot, he looked back once again and saw the porcelain white mask of the hunter nin.

"I cannot let you proceed any further. I will not let you kill our client." Mentioned the hunter nin. Naruto just stood there, not daring to move any further. The hunter nin then raised her right arm, and three senbon were on her interlocking fingers. Signifying her hostility against the blonde if he dared to take a step further.

"I'm not here for that old geezer's head." Said Naruto, his right hand twitching and in a blink of an eye, he twisted and fired the Hiraishin kunai hidden under his sleeve, the surprise attack did not go well as the hunter nin flicked her senbon deflecting the kunai.

Brandishing his chain, Naruto retracted the kunai and caught the handle with his right hand. He dashed quickly towards the hunter nin, and activated his technique, Hien.

Naruto jumped infront of his attacker, who was slightly surprised by the blonde's speed, but the Hunter nin sidestepped the overhead slash that Naruto sent her, causing a small part of the pavement to be sliced.

The hunter nin immediately noticed and thought, _'That kunai has an increased amount of range, most probably it was wind natured chakra, I have to be careful, no armour can protect you against the cutting power of the wind.'_

Naruto then dashed after Haku again, this time, his left arm was cocked back, and violent streams of gales began to circulate around Naruto's arm as dust began to pick up around him.

With his sword on his right hand, Naruto dashed at the Hunter nin and finally, he called out his technique as he let his left hand outstretch and punch the Hunter nin.

"Fuuton: Reppuken!"

The hunter nin dodged by stepping back, but immediately she was pushed back due to the force of the technique, The hunter nin staggered, as her feet slid back from the force and multiple cuts began to surround her body.

Naruto then looked at the hunter nin and said to her,

"I'm not here to kill the client, I'm here to take my vengeance upon you." Said Naruto as he then dashed towards the Hunter nin, his sword ready

"Sougetsu no Terasu: Mikatsuki no Mai! (Illuminating moon phase: First Dance: Dance of the Crescent moon.)"

Naruto then split to three people, two of which dashed to the sides with the one in the center vanishing, The two on the opposite sides of one another attacked her at once, the hunter nin merely stomped her foot on the ground and out came thousands of needles firing off from the water beneath her feet. Both of the Naruto on either side were hit and vanished in a cloud of smoke. Haku then, alarmed, went to look around until she felt someone from above with another overhead slash, Haku, instinctually stepped back as she was about to be sliced to two. Naruto almost missed his target, the mask falling of from the hunter nin's face as it was split into two.

Naruto then looked up and finally saw the person behind the mask. And to his shock, it was the village girl that had accompanied him just a few days ago…

"It's you…" Naruto mentioned, the girl looked at him and gave a melancholic smile. Naruto then felt his fists tightened as he asked

"Why… WHY DID YOU DO IT!?"

"A shinobi must know how it is to kill, and when it is deemed appropriate." Was her simple reply

"Do you hate me?" She asked, Naruto meanwhile, had let silence be his answer

"Hate is a natural thing for shinobi to have, it's what drives them to push the exceeding limit but with a price…" She said, as she closed her eyes, remembering the moments of tragedy that had befallen her home,

An image of a frightful mother being killed by a father whose ideals meant the destruction of different bloodlines, crossed her mind.

Her bloodstained hands as she pierced the man's chest with her Bloodline limit… And the curses that the man uttered as he was consumed by the eternal darkness…

It was painful to forget, but even more painful to remember. The traumatizing event that had forever haunted her in her dreams.

"But then, there's another emotion that one feels that drives them further from their limits…" She said as she remembered the time when she was taken under Zabuza's wing just before they escape from Water Country.

"It's the need to protect someone precious, someone that can understand and ease your pain that brings you relief… It is the hardest to obtain… For every man and woman alike are selfish by nature…Fuelled by the thought of self preservation. A basal instinct that cannot be overcome so easily. Tell me, Naruto-san, who do you wish to protect?" Asked Haku, Naruto had then let his stance down, as he thought of the people that made him feel special.

He remembered the wise teachings of the Sandaime, the listening ears and the laughs of the father-daughter duo in Ichiraku, the support and company of his friends, the unorthodox teaching styles of Kakashi, and the team's constant antics with each other that brought a smile to his face…

With this, he smirked and answered "Everyone."

Haku then raised her hands drawing the senbon from her hands and said, "Then show me that resolve."

Naruto indeed steeled his own resolve. There was no way that he can stop now, the girl in front of him had told him that. It was in her solemn expression.

Naruto's Hien roared to life, and the blonde charged at her like a mad bull. Immediately stopping on the side of the girl, swing the sword horizontally and aiming for her waist.

Haku immediately ducked and made a sweeping kick that forced Naruto to jump and rolled in mid air landing with his back against his enemy.

Haku immediately capitalized on this opening and immediately activated her jutsu

"Hijutsu: Sensatsu Suisho (Secret Technique: Flying Water Needles)"

Needles immediately went flying from every direction that Naruto could see, The rain of the needles kept on coming as it seemed it was near inescapable. Naruto then focused his chakra on his eyes and white lines began spiralling around his iris, Shin Yogen no Me has come to life.

The barrage of the needles kept firing from every direction, yet Naruto simply moved little by little and deflected some of the incoming projectiles at him with his kunai. Small unnoticeable movements even by trained Ninja, it baffled Haku just how the genin before her had a sudden change in body language from wide, very open movements to close, intricate and calculative dances that seemed to avoid every random needles that was shot at him.

"Every move has a flaw…" Naruto said, not a hint of emotion in his voice

As he continued to dodge every needle like flowing water, his body instinctively reacting to the suggestions that his eyes were giving him.

"Every attack that you make, even if there is a small hole in it, there is a possibility to exploit it, and eventually, all the exploited weakness of the attack will collaborate into one big weakness." With that, his he foot his foot down and flickered out of sight. Appearing next to Haku, a sword drawn to her chest, Naruto's right arm was on her right shoulder, still no emotions showed. His eyes began to slow down, the blonde had to deactivate it.

Haku tightened the grip on her senbon, and immediately she slid her left foot from the back, making Naruto fall on his back, the girl then held her senbon with both her arms and held it above her head, swinging it downwards to impale Naruto.

The blonde had barely enough time to react as he placed the kunai where he suspected he was about to be stabbed, his stomach, and true to his thoughts, the senbon was parried by the kunai as he fell down. Immediately, the blonde rolled to his side, and stood up, back stepping to increase his distance from his adversary.

"Though you say that, it doesn't matter in the end." Haku said as she began to form one handed seals, the likes of which Naruto hasn't seen before, he then saw the water around him, beginning to rise and began to form several walls of ice around him, encasing him inside. From his view, Naruto noticed how thin the ice was yet it was so condensed that he could practically see his own reflection.

"With this jutsu… The deed shall be done. Hijutsu: Makyo Hyousho (Secret Arts: Demonic Ice Mirrors)"

Haku then entered the dome of mirrors, her resolve unshaken…

Naruto knew it was a tough situation for him, the girl knew how to attack from all angles, which means all his blindsides would be immediately targeted… He knew what he had to do.

"Fuujin…" He muttered, and the seal on his forehead began to glow.

"I'll fight for my resolve, and I won't back down, I'll prove your practical ways are wrong. Even if I have to bash it into your head, I'll make you understand!"

Kakashi:

Kakashi stood before the man that had a giant cleaver in front of him. Fully aware that the said man that had a weapon that could tear apart a man with a single slice. Kakashi had to admit though, the site of a horse sized cleaver was intimidating. He remembered stories from his sensei that the people who carried these giant monstrosities were often identified as one of the violent members of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu. Add to that was their eccentric personalities of either a being with no remorse, or just plainly sadistic. They often had this huge battle hunger that seemed to be like their idea of a high time.

If Kakashi had that, he would better be off smoking something dubious than go through the hassle of fighting a man, gutting him alive and laugh like a psychotic killer. It was less messy, and was less disturbing.

"Oi, you want to fight, or are you just going to stand there reading that porn book all day?" Asked the impatient Zabuza

Kakashi sighed as he felt the three chakra signatures of his students flaring… Perfect, all is going according to plan.

"Alright then… Just don't bitch about it when you die." Said Kakashi raising his forehead protector concealing his left eye.

Zabuza laughed lightly, and simply said to the copy ninja, "I'll gladly take my Kibikiri Houcho and shove it up your ass for being so damn whiny in a fight."

"Sorry, I don't swing that way." Was the copy ninja's quick reply. Zabuza just smirked underneath his bandages.

"LET'S DANCE, KAKASHI!"

And so, the climactic showdown of the Battle for Wave begins.

To be continued…

* * *

Not much to say but another apology for the late update. Being a graduate student isn't what it's cracked up to be. I had A LOT to do. Finalizing my papers and paying for my bills was one thing. Then a lot of stressful activities happened, school CAN kill you that much is true.

Anyway, here's another Omake!

* * *

**SHUT UP!**

Deidara had a migraine of bijuu sized proportions. Not only was he sent back to his home village to do some reconnaissance missions on the two bijuu that Iwagakure had upon orders from their leader, he had to go with a partner that he was not pleased with.

It was Tobi.

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

Deidara seethed at that song. It was the song that Tobi had started singing ever since entering Tsuchi no Kuni's boundaries. And indeed, the terrain of Earth country was littered with mountain ranges as far as the eye could see. Deidara knew exactly why Iwagakure remained as a superpower. The mountainous ranges were so strategically helpful, that it would be hard for any enemy force to push its way to Iwa. It was only halfway through the country and into Iwa itself and already, Deidara wanted Tobi to spontaneously combust.

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

Diedara began to hold the bridge of his nose and counted ten backwards.

"She'll be comin' round the mountain; she'll be comin' round the mountain; she'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

It was over! Deidara thought that the song will finally end! Something he was a bit glad for! He didn't even have to blow Tobi up!

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

Damn it!

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

This little fiasco continued on for days as the pair walked and climbed their way towards the Rock village, by the time they were in sight of the village, Deidara was holding his ears, careful not to let the mouths of his hands bite it and was excessively grinding his teeth, his urge to kill was at boiling point.

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes!"

Deidara had to blow a fuse

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! **SHUT THE FUCK UP! YEAH!**" Deidara snapped, Tobi merely said to him, his index finger over his mask making a gesture for Deidara to be quiet

"Deidara-san! Don't shout! You might alert the guards!"

Whatever little patience he had left, Deidara instantly knew that it was gone, for he now finds himself scuffing in his satchel and grabbed four clay birds.

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

Tobi ran like his life depended on it, which technically, it was.

* * *

Jutsu Section:

Hijutsu: Aka Dosu (Secret Technique: Bloody Dagger)- C Rank- A technique that makes Haku use her own blood as a close range weapon

Hijutsu: Kongo Chiri (Secret Technique: Diamond Dust)- B Rank- Haku shatters anything that is made of ice with her chakra to microscopic levels, if it manages to be inhaled, the effect is that it could shred the victim's lungs due to the small ice is as sharp as a knife.

Katon: Enka Fuubakushougan (Fire Release: Flame Seal Restrain Strike Sphere)- Rank C- This technique is based from one of Judith's Burst Artes, Enka Fuubakushou, which was localized in NA as Conflaguration Blast. It's a technique that requires four Explosive tags on the ground and a fire jutsu to make the flames surround and ignite inside it's sphere.

Ninpo: Kazama no Yaiba (Ninja Art: Windmill Blade)- B Rank- Not actually a technique, but it has the principles of one, this is a weapon, pumped by chakra, the chakra becomes the blades and the four rods act as a conduit for the blade to appear and steer the direction of the flying projectile

Satsugeki Bukouken (Killing Drama Dance Wild Fist)- B Rank- Another technique that I got from the tales game, in NA, this is localized as Final Fury, Assassin in Tales of Destiny, and in Tales of Eternia, Fatal Fury. This technique that makes the user activate the release of the first gate, more on this next chapter

Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)- C Rank- A burst of flame running through a long thread of Ninja wire, inescapable once caught.

Hijutsu: Sensatsu Suisho (Secret Technique: Flying Water Needles) – B rank- Haku gathers some water from the air and surrounding environment into one thousand long needles, and then directs them a specific target at high speed

Hijutsu: Makyo Hyousho (Secret Arts: Demonic Ice Mirrors) – A rank- A technique to trap her opponent in an ice like dome. Creates twenty one mirrors to trap an opponent, Twelve at the ground, eight above with the last one placed on the sealing, with this jutsu, the user can travel to any of the ice instantly and attack any of her opponents in a flash.

* * *

Chpater Preview: Trap

When an animal is tempted to a free meal, they let their guards down; the predator becomes the prey, and they are forever doomed.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Trap

* * *

Sakura could never really think of anything at the moment, there was nothing that entered her mind at the moment, it felt like everything was molasses, everything was slow, unmoving in her vision. As she dashed at the masked ninja, she ducked as the bladed windmill went past her, she then slid down. Dust leaving in her wake, as she gave a rising kick at Gozu's chin tossing him into the air, Sakura then back flipped, grabbing the chakra powered shuriken in the middle of its spin effectively stopping its momentum and then tossed it at Gozu.

Gozu was careful, as he quickly channeled chakra into his arm that retracted and controlled the customized shuriken. The weapon attached itself snugly on the mist nin's arm, but was then startled by the appearance of Sakura right in front of her.

As soon as Sakura was close enough, she let go a punch on his abdomen that bent the man forward, Sakura wasn't done though as she kneed the man straight to the face, shattering his jaw bone, then, as droplets of rain, Sakura began to pepper Gozu with punches that seemed to strike as the fall of rain itself, it was fast, and way too unpredictable, as Sakura finished with a reverse axe kick that sent the man flying upwards and then finally, a straight kick downwards, pummeling the man and sending both him and Sakura plummeting straight down, as she hit the pavement below, a shockwave was sent around, with her as the epicenter and blowing Gozu away from her.

Gozu coughed up blood as he hit his back on the hard cemented walls of the bridge. His vision was hazy; his mask was dangling from his mouth as he began to cough out more of the life giving fluid.

"Meizu, damn it… I need to regroup with him, it looks like we need to use 'it'." Gozu uttered, forcing himself up, he could feel his left arm was dislocated from his shoulder, biting his lower lip, Meizu popped the shoulder back into its socket, earning a grimacing face from the mist nin and a cut on his lower lip then proceeded to do the same on his jaw.

Sakura meanwhile, was on her knees, the technique that she used, was far too taxing, she could remember when Gai-sensei had told her about the principles of the Hachimon (Eight Gates). She never realized just how grave the strain on her body was until now.

_Flashback:_

_Sakura stood upon a rock in the middle of a running stream, Gai had told her to find her to focus on her concentration, let the chakra distribute itself to one of the primary limiters of the body, the limit gate._

_As she could hear the flow of the water from the stream, she could also hear the lecture Gai was on about the proper release of the eight gates_

"_The limit gate, a gate set to control the flow of the muscular structure and the transfer of energy from the red blood cells to the different muscular structures of the body. Accessing this gate means breaking those limiters on the body, using the stored energy in the body as fuel and hyper activates the muscles and neurons to such a degree that it increases the secretion of adrenalin hormones and electrical impulses from the brain to the rest of the body, thereby increasing one's power, speed and reaction time, the triangle of all hand to hand combat, power, speed, and technique."_

_With those words, Sakura studied the concept behind the importance of the first gate, and Gai continued,_

"_However, the benefits are almost as many as the risks, using the limit gate wears and tears muscles faster, the body eventually loses an enormous amount of energy that over fatigue and dehydration could occur minutes after the use of the first gate. It leaves the user completely vulnerable to attack in the end."_

_Sakura noted, she could feel her chakra suddenly filtering near her head, most likely the first gate has been reached._

"_I'm teaching you the access of the first gate as the use of the Omote Renge (Primary Lotus) is far too deadly for you. I have another technique in mind." Said Gai, to this, his other student who was training with him, caught his attention_

"_Is there another technique that I didn't know Gai-sensei!? Please! Teach me as well!" Rock Lee interjected; Gai felt his fists shake at the passion of his student_

_Indeed, how can one resist his adorable student who has the passion to learn! How his blood yearned for the youthfulness of protecting one's friends! So hot blooded was his student that Gai was moved to tears…_

_And punched Rock Lee directly across the cheek._

"_I am sorry Lee! But this technique I will teach to Sakura is a variation of the techniques of the first gate! It isn't as effective or as deadly as the primary lotus, but it is best suited for my new student, Sakura who has started her training for a little over a month!"_

_Lee, merely fell on his knees and bowed, he quickly apologized to Gai,_

"_I am sorry Gai-sensei! I have completely doubted your judgment! For my mistake, I shall do Two Thousand kicks on my training log!"_

"_Kah! I am moved with emotion to your passion my student! LEE!"_

"_GAI-SENSEI!"_

"_LEE!"_

"_GAI-SENSEI!"_

"_LEE!"_

"_GAI-SENSEI!"_

_Flashback end_

Sakura felt like kicking herself at that memory, how was she involved with those two… Oh she forgot, it was Naruto.

'_Damn… My muscles are aching… I can't even feel my knees.'_ The pink haired kunoichi thought, and immediately focused back to her opponent who was now running towards the area where Sasuke and the nin's twin brother were fighting.

"Shit! He's seeking to double team Sasuke!" She screamed as she forced her legs to stand up, Sakura cried in pain, but as she remembered the possible situation that the Uchiha might be in, Sakura still forced her legs to run, even if they screamed that it was all that she could do, pain wasn't enough to bring her down. She won't let anyone from her team get hurt because of her, she was not a liability anymore. Rather, she had become a dependable comrade, teammate and most of all, a friend.

She would not let anyone die…

* * *

Sasuke:

The flames consumed Meizu inside, the fire resistant cloak did not do its job once the wires were wrapped around inside Meizu, the grip on the steel wire was so strong that the mist nin was too indecisive to move his arm, for fear of it being torn away by the almost razor sharp wire.

Once Sasuke ended the fire jutsu, the Uchiha held his right shoulder in pain as he kneeled down, the man knew the weakness of the Sharingan very well, late body reaction. Now, Sasuke was paying the price for it, if only he had stepped up his training further!

But now that was in the past, the nin before him, lay on his knees, completely incapacitated and possibly dead.

"BROTHER!" The voice said as its owner saw his brother down on the pavement, on his knees as he was burned by the Uchiha. The man replied under his breath,

"I-I'm… Fine…" Said Meizu, as he forced himself to get up, and looked at Meizu,

"So… Did you win?" Asked Meizu, Gozu just clicked his tounge,

"No, that bitch was tougher than I thought, I couldn't keep up with that technique she did, managed to dislocate my shoulder, she did! I'm pissed at her! Brother! It seems we can't win when we're separated, we underestimated them!" Said Gozu, Meizu nodded.

To Meizu, whenever Gozu was getting frustrated about his opponent, he knew that the opponent was stronger than they had anticipated. Kazama no Yaiba was no joke weapon, even with just the simple principle involved, it was able to fool many chuunin and occasionally, jounins on their countless chases from Kiri, it was surprising and fresh for the first time, that Gozu was coming to him for help.

So with a simple nod, Gouzu stood up behind Meizu and Meizu kneeled up front putting his hands together for the Seal of the Ram, both fighters yelled,

"**Conbi Henge! (Combination Transformation)"**

And then, both were engulfed by the smoke, Sasuke didn't know how to react as the figure from the smoke appeared, as the demon brothers stepped out of the smoke, the masks gone, both armlets were now on each of the person's arm, and then said to the Uchiha

"Asura. (Fighting Demon)" The man looked like both Meizu and Gouzu, the masks were removed, his hair far longer now compared to the two, the man was pale as white, and with seemed to be a chain that connected his arms together as if to look like restraints.

Sasuke stepped back; the amount of killing intent coming from the man was huge! Almost as terrifying as the one with the bandage up his face that they encountered on shore a few days ago!

Sasuke forced himself up, it seems his opponents or rather opponent was fresh and ready to start round two, whereas he had a hole on his left foot and his right shoulder, not good, he wasn't mobile enough.

To his surprise though, there was a vicious punch that came flying across to the man, courtesy of Sakura. The combination of both Meizu and Gouzu was thrown to the other side of the bridge,

The pink haired kunoichi then went to Sasuke's side and asked,

"Well, aren't you surprised to see your sexy teammate?"

Sasuke meanwhile smirked at her statement and replied back, "If you mean by sexy? No, if you mean by me seeing you beating that man in a manly way, yes."

Sakura just gave him the middle finger salute for good measure.

The Asura stood up from his spot, Sasuke immediately spotted the flying projectile heading towards Sakura and hurriedly, he tackled her down as the flying object of death went past them, immediately, though, Sakura could hear a clicking sound coming from the man, not wanting to expose her teammate while they were down to whatever jutsu it was, Sakura decided to activate, her steel body fortification.

Sounds of iron pellets ricocheting on the ground was heard as it tried to pierce the enhanced skin that Sakura already had. Sasuke was a bit thankful for that and immediately, he sensed the returning of the shuriken, he jumped up, taking Sakura with him, and dodged the shuriken that came streaking past below, then another clicking sound was heard, Sakura positioned herself in front of the line of fire again and guarded Sasuke, by spinning around in a one-eighty degree angle enveloping Sasuke

"We make a pretty good tag team." Said Sakura, Sasuke just nodded.

"Can you run?" Asked Sakura, Sasuke kneeled down and tore of a piece of cloth from his sleeve, putting pressure above the wound on his left foot.

"I'll bear it." Said Sasuke as he grabbed three kunai, five Shuriken end a his steel wire.

"I'll tell you when to attack, I'll watch your back and we'll charge at this guy in a straight formation, head on." Said Sasuke, Sakura nodded.

As soon as the bladed windmill was clutched firmly on the Asura's right hand, Sasuke ordered Sakura to start running first, Sasuke was ready to let all of his weapons fly…

Naruto:

Naruto was having a hard time, Haku was incredibly fast and very lithe, she was agile enough to do hit and run maneuvers around that wall of ice that it seemed like it wouldn't be sufficient to just flail around his arms and do Reppuken.

But as he performed the first song, Naruto had a few moments of breathing time.

He looked at the ice mirrors around him and the stream of wind that protected him, "Sono Tonoboe… (The Howling)"

He had to think up a plan on how to deal with the ice user before the protective wind dies down, his doujutsu was one of the keys, but it being used earlier on, he had to recharge his mind for a couple more minutes before he could do anything seeing as he was trapped inside.

As soon as the winds began to die down, Naruto was already squatting on the ground, widening his base and lowering his center of gravity, he then jumped as the sudden hail of senbon, rained down upon him in a flash. He twisted around his body for a summersault and clung to one of the ice walls using his chakra, and then jumped to the other mirror to his right, by then, he used his momentum and jumped dodging the assault of the fake hunter nin, senbon after senbon.

Naruto then landed on the ground, his breath becoming labored, senbon were lodged into different parts of his body, Naruto was in an excruciating amount of pain just bearing the pain took a lot of energy out of him, but the fact that he could not even land a blow, let alone touch Haku was frustrating him to no end.

But it was fortunate enough, his doujutsu had been available again, and inwardly he grinned, two minutes, he just needed two minutes to dissect this jutsu and stop the girl's vicious assault

"Shin Yogen no Me! (Eyes of Death Prediction)"

As soon as he activated his doujutsu, immediately, he began to systematically take down the needles that kept pouring on him. Reacting to the rhythm of Haku's attacks, as he spun around, he hit the upper right dome with his Reppuken, shattering the ice.

As the small shards of the frozen liquid fell from the upper right dome, Naruto began to see it clearly, as his eyes were locked on to the real target; Naruto detected it, as if she was moving at a regular pace. She was fortunate that she had evaded the mirror that she was at, but was surprised when the blonde had managed to see her get to the other mirror, it was different this time, it was as if he could see through her every attack…

"Escape is impossible…" Naruto muttered, no emotion laced in his voice, he began to lean back and without a moments notice, dashed towards his opponent at speeds that surprised Haku. True, Naruto was agile, but he wasn't as fast as Haku was, so for Naruto to exert such an enormous amount of acceleration, it was frightening!

When Haku met Naruto's full gaze for a moment, her sight, somehow, slowed down. She could see how slow her hand moved, how shallow her breathing was, and how loud her heart started to pound. Seeing Naruto's eyes like that, she couldn't help but stare as a fist came flying straight to her stomach.

The glass like water mirrors shattered like brittle crystals as the jutsu that Haku had created started to collapse from her loss of concentration. Naruto quickly followed suit, Haku being tossed outside of her jutsu meant that she could not get back in, as he was about to run the water around him began to crystallize again, as it began to creep at Naruto's foot,

"Hijutsu…"

Naruto turned his head around, to find Haku, her left knee on the ground, with her right hand in a hand seal while her left touched the floor of the bridge. Naruto cursed as he then gathered chakra at his right index finger and aimed down before she could finish

"Keibatsu no Ensui! (Secret Arts: The Dark Water's Punishment)"

With that, ice began to form in a dome like shape around the blonde creeping its way up, encasing Naruto in a dome of ice. Haku didn't stop there as spikes began to grow from the dome upwards, looking like pins ready settling down on a pin cushion and then finally, piercing the dome in a flash.

Haku had lowered her head as she uttered an apology to the one she had ended the life of. As she bowed and said her prayers, she suddenly opened her eyes and saw the blonde his right index finger pointing at her head at point blank range.

Haku with a shocked expression on her face, looked at the blonde and asked, "H-How did you…"

"Simple… I aimed Ichuu no Kaze downwards, the explosion wasn't heard because the ice dome that you made was so thick that's why you didn't notice me flying upwards from the force of my jutsu." Said the blonde

"You are indeed very skilled Naruto-kun." Said Haku, Naruto meanwhile, didn't move, there was no reaction,

"It's such a shame that we have met on the battlefield, we could have met as friends in different circumstances…" Said Haku as she turned into a puddle of water,

"Mizu Bunshin!?"

Suddenly, he could hear the tell tale sounds of running water, turning to his right, he saw Haku gathering water on her left palm and then launching it at Naruto

"Hijutsu: Koori no Yari! (Secret art: Spear of Ice)"

Haku then tossed the small orb of water straight at Naruto. The water began to lengthen and solidify as it went straight towards Naruto. The blonde managed to dodge the attack that went past him, the spear managed to pierce the edge of the bridge, piercing the rock hard edge shattering a small part of the area.

Naruto turned back as Haku was already on him with her bloody dagger formed, Naruto leaned back as a few strands of his hair was cut, the blonde then jumped as Haku made a sweep with her dagger, Naruto reacted and let the Hiraishin kunai fly from his sleeve once again forcing Haku to deflect the object, Naruto brandished his chain, forcing the kunai back into the palm of his right hand and then as he jumped down, he separated into three copies of himself

"Mikadzuki no Mai! (Dance of the Crescent Moon)" Said Naruto as he appeared above, about to deliver the blow, Haku stepped back, evading the sword strike from above, Naruto didn't stop there, as he dashed towards Haku giving a thrust with his chakra powered sword, Haku evaded to the side and gave Naruto a swipe of her dagger straight to his face, Naruto tilted his head to the side, the edge of the dagger managing to damage his left cheek.

Naruto then quickly pivoted his body, making a three-sixty spin to the right, and tried to slash Haku at her waist, Haku meanwhile, used Naruto's body as leverage and jumped, narrowly avoiding the horizontal swipe.

Haku then while in mid air, unleashed her flying water needles technique straight at the blonde who dodged every blow that was sent to him. He quickly began to close the distance between him and Haku, and as he neared, Haku kept bombarding him with her countless hijutsu at her disposal, but Naruto would not be deterred. He closed the gap as soon as Haku blinked, now Naruto took the stunned moment of Haku as the opening he needed

"Sougetsu no Terasu: Tsukikage! (Illuminating Moon Phase: Moonlight)" Said the blonde, said the blonde as his blade seemed to multiply going for Haku's legs. Haku was quick to react, placing the ice dagger in a downward angle to defend herself from the slash. But was soon shocked to see the chakra sword closing on her neck fast. Haku could do nothing as the blade came closer and closer…

Until Naruto stopped the blade just centimeters to her neck. Cold sweat came pouring down from the kunoichi as Naruto firmly placed the ninja dagger close to her neck.

"Why can't you kill me?" Haku asked

Naruto merely answered, "Because it isn't right."

"It's never right to kill." Haku replied

"Who said it was?" Was Naruto's retort

"Why did you stop?" Asked Haku

"Because you're like me." Said Naruto, as he stared Haku down with his own gaze

"I could see the pain you have. It's crushing you, just like what I felt back then." Naruto mentioned, Haku shook her head

"It is wrong to sympathize with the enemy." Said Haku

"I'm not human if I didn't." Said the blonde as he deactivated his chakra blade, loading the kunai back into right sleeve.

"Being a jinchuuriki means that I've become something that isn't human. Tainted by the flowing youki in my veins." Said the blonde as he faced his enemy away and looked up.

"It wasn't my choice to become the container of a bijuu… It wasn't my choice to be a sacrifice… It wasn't my fault why the Kyuubi attacked my village." Said the blonde

"But people are biased, letting their fear rule over their rationality. Acting on instincts instead of thinking." Said the blonde, Haku merely looked down.

Naruto then looked around and said to Haku, "You know what it's like right? Having a power that you don't want and can't understand… It's something that you can't simply run from, right?"

Haku nodded but then said, "I do not wish to end our fight this way, if you want me to listen to your answers then defeat me, here and now."

Haku then gathered the remaining chakra in her and concentrated on her feet.

Consequently, small water particles began to collect beneath her feet and crystallized. As it turned to ice, it began to creep on Haku's body as it slowly expanded from her. Ice began forming around her body, sprouting from the ground in different directions and then breaking down and shattering like glass and exploding as soon as it formed the peak of its tallest pillar of ice.

"Hyouton: Tougen no Unare (Ice Release: Cry of the Tundra)"

Naruto grinned, his doujutsu had thirty seconds left before the activation ends, he began charging his right index finger with chakra again, as he charged at Haku who was now beginning to be surrounded by ice, his grin never faltered, with his left hand, he held the Hiraishin Kunai, activating the chakra blade that he adored so much as he dashed through the exploding pillars of ice around the area of the fake hunter nin.

To Naruto, ambidexterity was such a useful talent…

Kakashi:

Kakashi had been quite at a disadvantage since the beginning of the fight, since Zabuza was a master of muon satsujin (Silent Killing) he had been using it to its full extent, managing to cut Kakashi by the side of his torso. Kakashi was thankful enough that he had reflexes as that of a cat and evaded the attack almost too close for his comfort. With that attack, Kakashi had managed to adapt to Zabuza's pattern. Kakashi knew for a fact that Muon Satsujin tended to target vital sites for a one swing one kill principle, the next would be the angle of the attacks that it came from. To this particular discipline, the practitioner of this style tended to target the victim's blind areas, mainly the back and the side of the body. So Kakashi was on full alert, turning his head left and right for his sides and then putting the utmost care for his rear side, careful of Zabuza's strikes.

Kakashi gritted his teeth and muttered,

"With the fog as thick as this, my Sharingan is totally useless…"

Zabuza laughed as he used utsusemi no jutsu (Voice Projection Technique) to gloat against the Jounin.

"You realized it haven't you? The fact that I have rendered stages of your Sharingan completely useless made you seem on edge!"

Another strike, this time, it was aimed on Kakashi's neck. With senses that of a Jounin, the scarecrow Jounin ducked and evaded the swipe. Zabuza, again, retreated back to the hazy mist for his cover.

"That stupid eye of yours can't see the future; it just has the ability of hypnosis and insight! The only way for you to see through my moves is that you see me, but since I'm a practitioner of Muon Satsujin, I've become your worse opponent! I'll attack the areas that your eye can't see! And with the possibility of making eye contact with you, I decided to cover eyes with my headband and let my hearing be my guide to the target, I can pulse my chakra around myself to act as a sonar and reflect back to me to where you are, by the looks of things, you seem not sure about yourself anymore!"

Then Zabuza made a swift movement to Kakashi's rear, this time, he went swooped in low. Kakashi then dodged the low horizontal swipe by jumping and flipping back before Zabuza could do a rising vertical counter. With Kunai drawn, he had immediately threw it to the Jounin who jumped back into the mist.

"My, my, such an adept user in Shizuka Aruku no Jutsu… I couldn't even hear his footsteps." Kakashi then looked at the blood that small trickle of blood that fell on the floor, by the smell of it, it was his own blood.

Kakashi had then been struck by that little fact. If he could smell his blood that accurately, then it's possible that…

Quickly coming to his senses, he grabbed a scroll from his pouch. He then swiped some blood from his cut torso and then unraveled the scroll, quickly performing the five familiar signals from his hands, he quickly swiped the blood from the unraveled potion of the scroll and slammed it hard on the ground and said,

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Doton: Tsuiga no jutsu! (Summoning arts: Earth Release: Tracking fangs technique)"

As soon as he slammed the scroll to the ground, sand dust began rising from the small fissures that began to surface beneath Kakashi's feet, the small dust guyser then travelled in a straight line to Kakashi's right, as it cleared away from Kakashi, the small dust geyser began to sink further into the ground, as it found its target quietly focusing his chakra around his body and slowly let it release in waves, Zabuza had thought that this chakra sonar technique that he learned long ago, was a great substitute for his current handicap.

But as soon as he felt Kakashi was kneeling on the ground, he had found his perfect chance, running towards the scarecrow Jounin, Zabuza poised Kubikiri Houcho back ready to kill the cycloptic Jounin with a slash straight to the head.

Only to be startled as five multi sized dogs bit him on his limbs and a large sixth dog appeared on his back biting him and grasping the Jounin, holding him down on the as he stood. Zabuza could feel Kubikiri Houcho slipped away from his grasp. With it, it crashed down on the cemented floor, its blade mounting on the ground.

"H-how did you…" Zabuza could only mutter, Kakashi then looked at him straight in the eye and said,

"You may have masked your presence from my eye and ears, but you didn't overcome the tracking ability of the nose." Said Kakashi as he jumped back a little and let go of three handseals.

"You see, that sword of yours has my blood, I may not familiarize myself with your scent, but I was very familiar with mine, with that blood, I knew for sure, that you were somehow in the mist, still alive." Said Kakashi as he gathered the pure orb of the lightning chakra on his palm, the blue chakra crackled as it chirped like a thousand birds, sending out sparks from every side of the small orb…

"Now you get to face my own original jutsu, Raikiri! (Lightning Cutter)"

Lightning charged in the palm of Kakashi's hand, crackling in streaks of light and screeching loud as Kakashi dashed towards Zabuza to finish him off, the sounds of one thousand birds chirping echoed through the sturdy bridge…

Sasuke and Sakura:

As Sakura and Sasuke dashed at the combined form of the demon brothers, Sasuke quickly drew his shuriken and kunai ready to fire away the weapons, the steel wire tied on each hole of his weapon. Sakura was up front, ensuring the protection from the iron pellets that the jutsu fired at them. The bladed windmill then made its appearance as it fired from the fighting demon's left arm, spinning fast to the two, Sasuke commanded with a mere shout of "Jump!" and evaded the shuriken as it went past zipping both of them, the shuriken went flying upwards and then, in just a second, it recoiled back and the bladed windmill was beginning to zip back at a faster speed, Sasuke jumped lifted Sakura by her armpits, Sakura was surprised at first but let Sasuke did what he did.

The shuriken went past them for another time coming from their backs, Sasuke immediately tossed Sakura towards their opponent. As Sakura appeared above their opponents, she let go of a chakra powered punch while under the influence of her Steel Body Fortification making the kiri nin dodge by a jump. The impact on the floor as evident as a small crater the size of a small child was present, the cement underneath Sakura's fist shattered and broke down to dust as she looked at the Asura and then smirked, without a as much as a sound, Sasuke was on him giving him an axle kick that plummeted him down to the cement floor, Sasuke then unleashed his myriad of shuriken and kunai, tied with the steel wiring that went buzzing past the fighting demon, it then began to surround him as the shuriken and kunai hit each other and ricocheted from one another.

Sasuke landed on the opposite side of their opponent and used five handseals ending it with the seal of the tiger once again,

"Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)"

Fire travelled from Sasuke's mouth, as it travelled to the wire string like a fuse to a firework, it surged to the string as fast as a running hare. The fire consumed the Asura inside as it screamed in agony, forcing to dispel the technique as the flames died down; the two brothers were on the ground, unconscious…

Sasuke fell on his back, finally letting the pain on his wounds overtake him, he turned his head up and gave a sigh of relief, he was glad it was over. Sakura sat down as well; the strain from using the first gate was already too much for her, her every muscle ached and throbbed as she sat down wincing as if she had a bad hip.

Sasuke then smirked as he said to Sakura, "You've become strong."

Sakura, surprised from the sudden comment from the Uchiha, looked at him confusedly. Obviously, she was not prepared for someone to compliment her like that, and it came from the UCHIHA nonetheless. Uchiha bend-over-you're-an-eyesore Sasuke, the same guy that Sakura thought to be so stuck up, she thought he would never smile even if he was about to get laid.

Sakura raised an eyebrow and replied unsure of what to say, "Uh… Thanks?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that and said to her, "What? First time I complemented you and all I get is a reply that seems like you're too unsure about it."

"WHAT!? THEN HOW DO YOU SUPPOSE I REACT!?" Asked the enraged kunoichi with pink hair

"I don't know, maybe fawn on me again like a hopeless fangirl?"

This time, Sakura retaliated, "SHUT UP SASUKE! SOMETIMES YOU ACT LIKE A GIRL!"

Sakura then suddenly held her stomach as she writhed in pain,

"Crap! When he said every muscle will hurt, I didn't think it was supposed to hurt there!" She said

With Naruto:

The bursting and shattering of ice continued, as Naruto began his charge to Haku.

_Ten seconds_

A shard of ice appeared from below him and he jumped and used a summersault to advance.

_Nine_

Quickly pivoting his foot to the left, he jumped to the same direction as another ice appeared itself on the ground and shattered once again.

_Eight_

Naruto then immediately stopped as he saw another quickly he made a spin move as the ice rouse up, with the peak of the deadly technique almost hit Naruto by the skin of his teeth.

_Seven_

Quickly gaining his momentum he finally neared the spot he wanted to be and jumped just before he was attacked by the cold object.

_Six_

Naruto saw Haku as she began to pant inside her crystal ice wall, he smirked as he held his chakra blade by his left hand and the collected wind chakra in his right index finger.

_Five_

As he descended head first, he fired of the wind bullet as he was faced with a large glacier of ice.

_Four_

The ice was crushed and destroyed as Naruto was flown back by the recoil of the technique.

_Three_

Putting his hands together for a middle index cross, a shadow clone popped to existence at his back and caught him in midair.

_Two_

The clone then spun around and tossed the blonde towards his target. Naruto raised his hand, delivering a slash to the ice that covered Haku, the slash penetrated the thick wall of ice shattering the crystal that seemed to surround Haku like a cocoon.

_One_

Naruto's Doujutsu, deactivated, forcing the blonde to pant heavily, the strain in his mind was visible, as he became dizzy. He tried to recompose himself, by widening his base to lower his center of gravity and maintain stability in his standing. In his fit of whirling visions and nausea, the body of the girl fell down on him as he caught her by accident, losing his balance and falling down on the ground.

"You were… excellent, Naruto-kun…" She mumbled as she began to lose consciousness, Naruto just shook his head; the battle was merely a battle of attrition between them. Naruto couldn't land a fatal blow and Haku couldn't finish him off.

"You know, when you say that while you're on top of me, it makes me feel… weird, as in, there's-a-second-meaning-to-this-that-isn't-good-for-me weird." Naruto mentioned, Haku merely mumbled

"I don't mind… As long as its you…"

Then she fell asleep from the exhaustion

Naruto just scratched his head, "Damn it! If that perverted sensei were here, he'd misunderstand this and laugh like a little school girl!"

Now how could he get the girl that was currently sleeping on top to take her off of him? Naruto wished he had activated his doujutsu a little later, and then groaned and complained about the two minute time limit of his doujutsu.

"**Get real brat. That has to be the best position you're in since you were born."** The Kyuubi said to him

"Shut up and sleep back in your cage, Kyuubi-chan." Retorted the blonde

Kyuubi meanwhile, gave an indignant huff and turned his head from his container.

With no other option left for him at that moment, the blonde just gave a sigh and slept.

Kakashi:

A few centimeters…

Only a few centimeters was the Raikiri on Zabuza's chest. Kakashi had stopped before he could kill Zabuza, the Mist Nin merely looked at him as his chin was raised, knowing that he was about to die, a couple of explosions and a few screams of anguish came from below the bridge as it sent surges of water upwards. Kakashi sighed in relief as he looked at the side of the river and noted that Naruto was excellent in laying those depth charges hidden from plain sight.

"Why did you stop?" Asked Zabuza, Kakashi looked to his right and said,

"Because our real target is here." Said Kakashi as he cancelled the Raikiri, he could hear footsteps and the sound of an engine running, as the silhouette began to form, he could see a short man, being surrounded by these tall men that held swords. Kakashi smirked; Gatou took the bait, hook, line and sinker.

"Ah, I see that you four did a good job in taking care of my biggest problem here in Wave." the man said as he smirked, Kakashi could only look on with mild interest.

"Well now, since you obviously took care of the ninja that the drunken baboon hired, I bet you're all tired, right? I bet all of you are tired." Gatou asked smirking even further

"Well then, I guess this is the end of the contract." Said the little man, raising his right hand and the men took their stances as they grinned and snarled at the two Jounin, now Zabuza was insulted,

"Wait a minute! You mean to tell me that you only used me and my subordinates as bait to lure that sorry piece of crap out!? I want compensation Copy Ninja!" Said Zabuza as he obviously growled at the now smiling man if the inverted u was an indication on his eyebrow

"Ah, Sorry about that, we just had to get that guy caught red handed." Said Kakashi, as his blonde student burst from the mist with a ticked off face and yelled at the men in front of him,

"WHO WAS THE DIPSHIT THAT WAS FLAPPING THEIR GUMS LIKE A CANNON HUH?! I WAS HAVING THE NICEST NAP THERE AND YOU SORRY EXCUSES FOR KILLERS ARE DISTURBING MY PEACE!"

"It's that short blonde demon! Let's murder him, boys!" One of the thugs said and Naruto cracked his knuckles while yelling at them,

"DON'T CALL ME SHORT!" The blonde yelled as he dashed into the fray.

If one could see the falling of various bodies on top of Tazuna's bridge, one would wonder if there was a festival going on, if one could listen a little closer, they would hear sounds of utter mutilation and screams from countless doomed men that ran over one little blonde shinobi

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU? I'M NOT SHORT!"

And another was tossed to the seas of Nami no Kuni once again courtesy of a jaw breaking punch that was felt to the other side of the cheek.

Tazuna couldn't believe the ridiculousness of the whole ordeal, men were being tossed overboard by a little blonde as he bulldozed his way to the thugs and was running straight towards Gatou.

"Mah, Naruto, don't kill the target, Hokage-sama made it clear we have to apprehend him alive." Said Kakashi in a half bored tone, Naruto just angrily stared at the shrewd business man and gave a sinister fox like grin that made Gatou urinate his pants, Naruto stared on in disgust as he turned his head away and pounded him to the ground.

Inari and the others though, arrived at the scene a little too late as they saw all of Tazuna's hired thugs running away tails between their legs from the bridge as if something horrifying made them cringe in fear and head to the hills.

"Run! That little runt is massacring our guys! Get the hell away!"

When they were at the bridge though, they saw the old man, Tazuna staring on in disbelief as he watched the shinobi battles that occurred. Inari then saw Gatou on the ground, shivering like a wet kitten in front of the blonde haired ninja on the pool of his own urine. If it were not for the seriousness of the situation, Inari would have laughed.

Kakashi then approached Gatou, and kneeled down to him at eye level and said, "Gatou, under the order of Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage and the Daimyo of Hi no Kuni, I am placing you under arrest for Smuggling, fraud and attempted murder."

With that, he was knocked out with a simple chop to the back of the head.

"So what are you guys going to do now?" Asked Kakashi as he asked the approaching mist nin on his back

"Since you got your target, I think that the mission is a success for us. Though I'd appreciate it if you didn't use me and my team as a decoy to rule out that pig." Said Zabuza pointing to the unconscious tyrant, sprawled on the ground with a bruise on his left cheek.

"I like that kid of yours Kakashi, got some real spunk and attitude of a real fighter. I was amused when he kicked those goons' asses, not very classy, but that's what I like!" He said hitting Naruto on the back with the blonde coughing and stumbling from the action.

To be continued…

* * *

Satsugeki Bukouken (Killing Drama Wild Fist)- B rank- A move that uses the body's limits increasing one's own strength, speed and reaction time. The user pummels the enemy for a limited time before suffering from the side effects such as muscle strain and weakness. Currently, Sakura's strongest move. Based from Namco's Tales of… games.

Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)- C Rank- a move where Sasuke immobilizes the victim with steel wire using his kunai and shuriken and then uses Sofuusashan no Tachi as a pre-requisite to bind his target. He finishes the move with a Fire that travels to a steel wire to consume his enemies.

Hyouton: Keibatsu no Ensui (Ice Release: The Dark Water's Punishment)- Kekei Genkai- A move that was based from Bleach, this move imitates the Hado art, Kurohitsugi or the Black Coffin. The user is surrounded by a dome of ice and several stakes appear above to pierce the dome below.

Hyouton: Tougen no Unare (Ice Release: Cry of the Tundra) Kekei Genkai, a move based from Rylai Crestfall's final move, Freezing Field, from Defense of the Ancients, the user uses her chakra to compose and break down ice in a mere fraction of a second.

Hyouton: Koori no Yari (Ice Release: Spear of Ice) Kekei Genkai, a move that transforms water in the vicinity into a long spear to be used as a projectile.

Raikiri (Lightning Edge)- A Rank- Kakashi's original technique, an assassination move that relies heavily on the thrust that is created in a straight line. But the destructive power behind it as it can pierce almost any defense. Because of its loud screeching noises, it made the impression of one thousand birds chirping, thus its original name, Chidori (Chirping of a Thousand Birds)

No Omake in this chapter, sorry…

Anyway, Preview section:

Parting is a sweet sorrow, as the new day appears a new chapter unfolds, decisions that shape the world, will disrupt peace.

Next Chapter: Peace Treaty


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen: Peace Treaty

Freedom was a gift that man had come to comprehend and strived for since the very beginning. To any human, freedom was the greatest attainment of living. It served as a motivation to attain new heights in life. It is a dream so fulfilling and so wonderful that people can't help but rejoice!

Which was why the people of Wave where busy with their festival for the last three days. When they heard of the mission that the Daimyo of Fire Country had assigned to the Konoha shinobi, they were overjoyed. Especially when they heard that the team had unremarkably caused the downfall of the Gatou shipping lines, the millions worth of smuggled drugs and goods going to Fire Country and its allies were confiscated and demanded that Gatou reprimand the damages that it caused to the countries. That is of course, not before Naruto had something to do about it.

"Listen up lowlife; I gave you the chance to live. Now just sign the damn contract!" Said the blonde, handing Gatou a piece of paper, the defeated businessman gained an indignant huff of protest.

"As if, I would let any remaining money I have on you, my remaining Swiss accounts only have about, Seventy Million Ryo left. I'd be damned if I give it up to you!"

Naruto had grown a bulging vein on his forehead as he began to choke the man.

"You little bastard! I 'ought to-!" Naruto then stopped as an idea popped into his head.

"Shin Yogen no Me! (Eyes of Death Perception)" Naruto's eyes began to change, as a white stream from his irises began to circulate, his pupil began to constrict.

At the most basic sense, from his understanding of the doujutsu, it seemed as more like it was a Genjutsu rather than a Ninjutsu in itself, it somehow "tricks" all of the opponent's five senses… It does the job well. But Naruto soon discovered that it can also prolong the sensations within a nerve. So if say, Naruto stabs an opponent with a needle on the skin of his victim, they would experience pain like no other. It would be doubled even tripled than the amount of pain given by a normal needle prick, and the duration of the pain would be far, far longer than it is normally.

Naruto then slowly grabbed Gatou by the right arm, and began stabbing Gatou's elbows and shoulders. At first, Gatou had not felt the pain coursing through his body like an electric jolt. Instead it was slow, Gatou was already in a stupor like daze at first, then as fast as a lightning bolt, pain surged through his system like wild fire, a single needle prick like that felt like being stabbed with a sword continuously, as Naruto then raised his arm and began to continuously stab Gatou on his arm who was crumpling in a heap because of the pain.

Naruto wasn't done yet as he then held the prisoner down with a foot on his back.

Gatou could feel his senses going into overdrive, the pain was excruciating! It felt like being electrocuted and it was spreading around his body. Even the blonde's pressure on the back of his head was painful.

"GUAH!"

Gatou yelled in pain from his cell, as Naruto devilishly grinned and continued to torture the corrupt business man.

"So, feeling like handing over the money?" Asked the blonde earning a curse from the business man

"Fuck you!"

Naruto's eyebrow twitched, as he grabbed Gatou by the collar and then said,

"Maybe if I hit the correct area, you'd change your mind!"

Another scream was heard…

Two days later:

A grin escaped from the Uzumaki's face as he walked towards the opposite end of the bridge with some of the people from Wave escorting back. With his hands on the back of his head, the blonde jinchuuriki's mood didn't go unnoticed by Sakura.

"What got you so happy about?" Asked the pink haired shinobi, Naruto merely chimed and said, "Oh nothing…"

With that, he whistled and averted Sakura's gaze, Sakura however, looked at him with doubt but ignored it in the end… Naruto was Naruto after all; no one could ever tell what was on his mind. Especially since he had invited the quartet of Kiri Nuke-nin to join the village, to be able to walk around with them as if their fight was nothing, was a little nerve wracking, that and Zabuza's eyes seemed to send the shivering goosebumps down her spine in fear of the man's history.

Sasuke on the other hand, just kept quiet with his hands on his pocket, letting the mist twins have a conversation with him in the middle. Well, if you could consider Meizu's muffling in the bandages speaking.

"MMFFF, MFFMMFF, MMFF MFF!"

"Oh, so you really wanted that Toro Sushi? Too bad you can't eat any solid food for the next two weeks!"

"MMFFF, MMFF, MMMMFFF, MMMMMMMFFFFFFFF!"

"Ah, yes, it would be nice to get some Onigiri on the way back now is it?"

And throughout the conversation, the raven haired avenger in the middle was growing a throbbing vein on the back of his head, which, by the time Meizu muttered another worth of gibberish from his bandaged mouth, Sasuke lost it.

"WOULD YOU TWO JUST SHUT UP?"

The twins looked at him in silence and then walked forward leaving Sasuke behind, all the while, he saw his blonde team mate handing over what seemed to be a hundred ryou bill.

"MMFFF, MMMFFF, MFFFFF!"

Gozu laughed lightly as he counted the money and then said, "I couldn't say it so better myself, dear brother! Money makes the world go round!"

Sasuke just shook his head as he cradled it with his right hand, all the while looking at the blonde who was laughing while handing the bill over.

The Uchiha just seethed at that thought.

As they were making their way to the opposite end of the bridge, Naruto looked back when the little boy called out to the 'blonde idiot'

The said blonde turned around and gave a smack on the head of the little boy.

"Don't call me stupid! Stupid!" Naruto yelled

"Who you callin' stupid!? Stupid!?"

"I'm calling you stupid! Because you ARE stupid!"

"Moron!"

"Shrimp!"

"Short stuff!"

"I AM NOT SHORT!" Naruto yelled, as he was about to tackle the little brat until Kakashi held him by his collar.

"Mah, Naruto, calm down… We wouldn't want you to destroy your image in Wave now, don't we?" Said the Cyclops Jounin

"Huh?" Both Sakura and Sasuke wondered as Zabuza pointed at the horde of girls that were Naruto's age all holding their hands close to their chest with hearts in their eyes

"Hmmm… Naruto-sama…"

A sudden chill coursed through Naruto's spine as he watched the women making their way towards him with a glint in their eyes.

On to the background, Sakura could see Haku emitting a somewhat dark aura as she stared as the women in front of the blonde boy continued to ogle him with hungry stares. Sakura could only laugh nervously…

"Now let's be rational about this…" Sakura tried to console Haku whose aura grew darker and fiercer than ever before. Then it all went back in Haku as she looked at Sakura with a smile on her face,

"Why? Whatever do you mean, Sakura-san? I'm rational beyond doubt, you see! I'm not angry at all!" She said, Sakura just sweatdropped and said to Haku, "If you're not angry then don't hold your senbon like that…"

Haku, out of embarrassment, laughed nervously and slid the senbon in her pocket, though she dared not to let go…

Sasuke just shook his forehead.

"Well, thanks to you guys, the dream of finally getting rid of Gatou off our hide came true!" Said Tazuna and everyone from behind the old man cheered

Kakashi just scratched the back of his head and laughed modestly, "Ah, it was nothing."

Zabuza had a different opinion though, "Nothing!? You should be thanking me and my team you lazy ass jounin! I can't believe you're actually THE Copy Ninja! I'm disappointed!"

Kakashi, turned a deaf ear towards Zabuza and just said, "Hmm… You say something?"

Zabuza had a vein popping from his forehead, "YOU WANT A GO?"

Naruto just sighed along with Kakashi, people just naturally get ticked off by them, that or they have almost too much unwanted attention…

The small group of girls then began surrounding the last Uzumaki

"Ow, hey! Don't shove!" The blonde yelled by this time, Sakura was already restraining Haku by the shoulders who was beginning to thrash about.

"If things are going to be like this every mission, I won't mind being stuck in this team." Said Sasuke, Sakura turned to him and wonder, until Sasuke replied,

"The blonde dobe is too much of a magnet for trouble… Every time we're all together, there's always something bound to happen." Said the Uchiha

Sakura chuckled at that, seeing the blonde struggle inside the horde of fan girls that he had made in this small country.

"Ow! Damn it! Get off!" The blonde yelled, with none hearing his words

He was soon relieved from his anguish when Kakashi, who was still holding Naruto by the collar pulled him from the assault of almost stripping him bare.

When Kakashi pulled the blonde, Naruto looked like a wet puppy that almost drowned.

"Mercy…" Naruto muttered and Kakashi just gave an eye smile when the women voiced their disappointment.

"Well, it's been a blast staying here in Wave, but as any shinobi must do, we shall take our leave." Said Kakashi placing Naruto by the shoulders and walked away with his team, along with an irate Zabuza and a not so friendly Haku who glared back at the village women that were waving at them.

"That kid… He'll make miracles someday…" Said Tazuna who was seeing the shivering blonde on Kakashi's back

"Who are you talking about, father?" Asked Tsunami

"I meant the idiot looking blonde, that guy just brought back hope to my grandson and to the people of Wave, I was planning to name this bridge after him, but I never caught on his name…" Said Tazuna

Inari just scratched the back of his head, was his grandfather drunk again?

Inari then deadpanned him, "His name's Naruto, grandpa…"

"Oh! Haha! Then I guess 'Super Amazing Bridge that Tazuna Built' would no longer be the appropriate name, huh?" Tazuna said, giving a sheepish smile

One of the villagers muttered, "It was never an appropriate name…"

Tazuna then glared at him intensely and then said, "Well, I guess the Great Naruto Bridge would suit this little thing just fine…"

To that, everyone in Wave agreed.

Hokage Tower, Three days after:

"I hate you…" Sarutobi muttered, sending a vicious glare at his current enemy right now, if looks could kill, Sarutobi would have already dealt a lethal blow at his undefeated foe.

"…" Was the object's reply, Sarutobi then reached for his most trusted weapon, his opponent was merely waiting for him to make the first move, standing on the old man's desk, patiently waiting for Sarutobi Hiruzen to initiate his plan of action.

STAMP!

STAMP!

STAMP!

"Damn it, I'm more than Seventy years old, past the age of retirement, I imagined myself just fishing or gardening at this age and I still find myself having another bout with you for the past twelve years after the Yondaime died! Curse you, Minato! I bet you why you did what you did was just to escape from any Kage's adversary!" Sarutobi griped, handing another paper in front of him, with the Kage officially stamping it.

"Petition for an exclusive Porn Shop? What kind of joke is this!?" Sarutobi yet again mentioned, as he then looked to his left and then to his right, not one to skip a beat, he did a double take

"…"

"…"

"…" Sarutobi was silent for a moment and then slowly but surely, he grasped the approve stamp and then as fast as lightning, he stamped the petition and gave the allotted budget as fast as he can. Then without anyone noticing, he placed the paper on the approved bin and piled it up with the rest of the missions.

Sarutobi merely whistled and then began going through the rest of the paperwork that were mounting on his desk.

As soon as he had finished his paperwork, it was already sundown, he looked outside and saw the visage of the Hokage mountain, standing tall and proud below his beloved village, the eldest Hokage sighed…

It was times like these that Sarutobi was reminded why HE was Hokage, as he stood up from his chair to view outside, a person knocked on his door and said,

"Hokage-sama… Team Seven and four other people have arrived at the southern gate."

Sarutobi nodded, he stood up grabbed a pipe and then lit it,

"Send them to my office at once." Was his simple but immediate reply.

A few minutes later, a silver hair peeked inside the office and then slowly entered the office,

"Did you get my… Request… Hokage-sama?" Asked Kakashi, Sarutobi's eyes were as wide as dinner plates,

"That was you?" Asked the old man incredulously and then coughed, blushing a little and stammering while replying to Kakashi

"Ah… Y-yes, ingenious request, I'm sure the male shinobi would find that request of yours… Intriguing." Said the Fire Shadow coughing a little when the rest of the awaited team arrive

"This is Konoha? Isn't the idea of _Konohagakure _supposed to be hidden? How can a red fortress wall be camouflaged in a forest full of green leaves? This isn't what I'd imagined it to be."

Zabuza continued to rant outside, Kakashi just slumped his shoulders and sighed, this is going to take a while…

"Don't mind Zabuza-sama, it's just his way of showing affection…" Said Haku, Naruto then muttered

"Yeah, affection to a tree stump…" To this, everybody except for Zabuza snickered while the said man grabbed Naruto by the collar of his shirt and said,

"Want to take this outside, little man?"

Naruto had a direct reply, "I am NOT little!"

He raged as he was then again, grabbed by the back of his shirt and was then brought inside the office,

"Okay, care to tell me what all of this is about?" Asked the Sandaime

"Well, it's like this, Gatou had us fooled when he paid for a C-Rank mission, I thought it would go over smoothly, until the opposing factor hired a ragtag team of Nuke-nin…" Kakashi then pointed to the four people behind him.

From then on, Sarutobi heard the full details of the mission how the double mission that Kakashi had taken place, the evidence that he had obtained and the interruption of Zabuza and his team, the little information gathering that occurred in Wave and the battle at the bridge, Sarutobi was impressed with Team Seven's competency, perhaps he would consider them to more C-Rank missions in the future.

"I knew it was suspicious, our policy stated that all mission payments were to be paid before the requested mission's specified date. All transactions shall be between the finance department and the client or to the Hokage himself. I let this little excursion happen for one time due to the request of the Daimyo. Gatou was careless enough to sink into my trap, I've been endorsing Konoha to him for months now, it was a relief that it finally paid off."

Naruto scratched the back of his head while Sasuke and Sakura frowned, "You mean to tell us that the mission payment was zero to begin with?"

Sarutobi closed his eyes and then nodded

"In your C-Rank mission… Yes, but thanks in part to you three; I'm splitting the mission payment by the daimyo's A-Rank mission. Don't worry; you'll be receiving payments that are well above than that of an average C-Rank mission. Kakashi, I hope this is okay with you?"

Kakashi merely replied, letting his cheapskate attitude show for a moment just to tease his students, "Well, I'd really hate splitting the money that I rightfully deserve alone…"

To this, the three shouted in unison, "Hey!"

Sakura was the first to reply, "If it weren't for us, you'd have already drowned in that Water Prison that Zabuza made!"

"Tch." Was Sasuke's usual reply and Naruto was raging so much he was stomping the floor with his foot

"You perverted jounin! You'd already be swimming in the gallows if it weren't for us! IT TOOK ME QUITE A LOT OF MONEY JUST TO SET UP THOSE TRAPS GODDAMN IT!"

Kakashi chuckled and said to his students, "Well, I was only joking, of course you get the pay; I hear the Daimyo put a hefty price on the mission, and he deemed it a priority so…"

With that, the three just sighed and glared at Kakashi,

"When it comes to business…" Naruto said

Sasuke continued "We mean…"

"Business!" Said Sakura

"Excuse me…" Interrupted Haku, the four (Sarutobi, Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto) turned their heads at the same time to look at her and she said nervously

"Well… That is um… Don't forget about us?" She asked unsurely

"Ah yes, this does put you on a precarious situation…" Sarutobi said, as the four shinobi from Kiri nodded

"Normally, Nuke-nin are to be executed in any hidden village, as part of the treaty that all nuke nin are to be considered a danger to any hidden village." Sarutobi said and then closed his eyes, leaning back into his chair and then continued

"At least, that's the façade, to any hidden village, a Nuke-nin is vital, they have information from their hidden village, which is essential to any opposing village, right now, Kiri is on a neutral Peace treaty to the other hidden villages, being secluded due to their countless civil wars and the terrorizing of the Kaguya Clan, the Mizukage ordered a complete isolation of Kiri from the outside world. The Mizukage, I have no doubt, is not foolish enough to instigate an aggressive action towards us."

To this the four people nodded, the Sandaime then said, "But understand that we have a standard precaution when handling foreign nins, and with that event coming ever closer in just a month, our security will be tightened even more."

Kakashi immediately understood this, it was the chuunin exams, the event would surely attract foreign dignitaries and nins alike.

"With that, I'm afraid I'm going to have to place you four in house arrests for a month and then we can begin your active duties, until I say so otherwise…"

The Sandaime finished and the four looked surprised for a moment,

With that said four ANBU came in from the windows and escorted the four outsiders to their current stay.

Before they closed the door however, Haku took a glance at the spiky haired blonde before going away,

Sandaime was quick to notice this and chuckled silently,

But before being dismissed, Sarutobi Hiruzen made an announcement to team seven, "I got another mission for you four."

To this, Naruto looked flabbergasted and said, "Huh!? But we just got back!"

Kakashi didn't pay attention to Naruto's banter and let the Hokage speak, "No, not now, I meant four days from now Naruto, an emissary has sent a letter to me from Kumo…"

He paused for dramatic effect and then continued, "It seemed, now, that with the new Raikage appointed, they want to renew the peace treaty."

Naruto looked pale at this, remembering the night of the abduction of the Hyuuga Heiress. To this, Naruto frowned and asked,

"Are they going to take place here?"

"No, the treaty would take place in Kumo now, just to show that they mean it, we would do so as well."

Naruto was wary however, "I don't understand why we're going for this mission, shouldn't Jounin come in case something DOES happen?"

Hiruzen knowingly smiled and said to Naruto, "That's why I have Kakashi; he'll be more than enough to handle anything… And one more for security purposes."

Now, Kakashi was interested, who could possibly provide support to him?

"I think Yuuhi Kurenai and her team would be sufficient."

Kakashi's visible eye widened and Naruto scowled, expressing his discontent

"With all due respect Hokage-sama, as I recall an international incident occurred when it involved someone from her clan…"

Sasuke and Sakura looked bewildered for a moment, while Naruto still remained silent

"And if we go to Kumo with her as one of our representatives, with all due respect, that is not bravado but foolishness!" Said Kakashi, Sarutobi however, begged to differ

"And that is exactly why I'm allowing it, you see, tempting Lightning Country would prove whether or not Kumo is willing to kidnap her again, if they do so, I already have Tora and his team on standby at the borders. For more direct purposes, I'm there as well. Rest assured, I have taken the liberties of any other possible scenarios I could think off. Meet me by the northern gate 4am sharp."

Although Naruto's dismay was subtle, Sasuke and Sakura couldn't help to notice nonetheless, exiting the room, the four had been dismissed, and without even looking back, Kakashi was already gone with a poof.

As Naruto was about to turn his head and go home, he was then halted when Sakura said to him, "How about the three of us get some snacks before we head on home… This is the first time the three of us completed an A-rank mission."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at this… Sakura never asked for a team outing even after their training and team exercises, both of which were physically demanding on all of them.

'_Then again, we didn't even have the energy left to do something fun after it.'_

Naruto had his suspicions but he was reluctant at first, that is, until Sasuke approved of the idea.

"Time to relax for a moment and enjoy something before heading back home… I suppose we COULD go for Takoyaki at this time no ramen for now, my tongue is getting stale from eating the stuff every week after training, I just think Kakashi's just too much of a cheap bastard to treat us to other restaurants …" Said Sasuke, now Naruto started raising his right eyebrow, indicating that there was indeed something going on.

But Naruto was curious, so he had to let it get the better of him and finally agreed.

Sakura was relieved at that, she thought she might never convince the blonde to go ahead with what she was thinking, but thankfully, the blonde took the bait.

The three of them headed of towards the restaurant and ordered their meals, waiting for the vendor to finish with their order, while they were waiting, Sakura had broken the silence with the three…

"Back then at the Hokage's office, you were behaving differently when Hokage-sama mentioned a peace treaty with Kumo… As far as I know, it went horrible and the treaty was almost never signed…"

Naruto merely looked outside and scoffed at it, "More lies about what is really going on…"

Sasuke simply looked interested and asked the blonde, "You know something we don't?"

Naruto replied quickly, "No… Nothing."

Sakura frowned at this, "Then what about that statement earlier? You said there was something going on that's deeper than this."

Naruto sighed and made his shoulders loose, "I'll tell you if you keep quiet, let's finish our food here and we'll go to some place secluded."

The two nodded and ate their share of the Takoyaki, all the while; wondering what was going through Naruto's head.

When they were done, the three rookie members of team seven made a beeline towards one of the training grounds, Naruto did a double take, and sensed the presence of fluctuating chakra, other than Sasuke's or Sakura's.

Once it was clear, he turned towards his teammates and said, "Kumo attempted to kidnap a member of the Hyuuga Clan when the peace treaty was taking place, the peace treaty was a fraud to capture the Byakugan. But now, I'm more wary about the peace treaty taking place in Kumo."

"Isn't Hinata part of Team Kurenai?" Sakura wondered, Naruto replied, "Precisely why I'm worried, it was also Hinata that was kidnapped all those years ago."

Sasuke frowned at this, "So you're saying Kumo could attempt to kidnap Hinata again, even under the nose of the Hokage."

Naruto merely nodded, and then looked at the training stump situated in front of them,

"There's a high possibility, the same could be said to you too, Sasuke, you are one of the two last holders of your bloodline, I'm sure there's a high chance that Kumo would be interested in you as well."

Sasuke tensed at this

Naruto then put his hands in his outer pockets, and said, "I have no doubt there's something big going to happen once we get to Kumo, so I want us to train for two days after we rest, I might request team eight to join us as well, we'll be needing a plan just in case, Jiji may be the professor, but he's still human, he can't guarantee everything in this, and neither could us, but at least we'd have a slew of back up plans if everything blows up."

The two nodded at this, and then Sakura asked, "H-How do you know about Hinata's kidnapping?"

Naruto then said, "Because I was accidentally involved with it, I was the other witness."

Sasuke was surprised at this and then asked the blonde, "Let me guess, it was confidential info?"

Naruto nodded and then said, "Well, I got to go home, I need to check my things and get a new apartment, living near Training Area 44 is too much even for me…"

With that, he went away, Sasuke and Sakura looked at each other, then Sakura said, "It seems like Naruto knows more about Konoha than we do… I'm getting worried of what other secrets he has considering the safety of Konoha."

Sasuke looked intently on the blonde, if he knew literally that many confidential info, could he also know about the massacre as well? It was then that Sasuke's head began to ache, somehow, a flashback was entering his mind…

"_Hey quit that what are you doing!?"_

"_No time to explain, we need to get to the Uchiha Complex right now!"_

"_What!? What's happening at home right now!?"_

"_Just come with me, or else you could die!"_

Sasuke began to breath heavily, he looked on at Naruto's direction, that sudden memory bewildered the Uchiha, "What the hell was that!?"

He mumbled, Sakura looked worried at first as Sasuke kneeled when his series of headaches began to make the Uchiha kneel on the ground… Sakura immediately recognized it, it was a symptom that was far too familiar with people who've had recurring memories from traumatic experiences.

Sakura had began studying medical techniques, as per Kakashi's request back then, Sakura served as back up for team seven, between two promising direct assault and assassination specialists, Naruto and Sasuke.

Kakashi mentioned how Sakura was crucial to the team, for she has the ability to keep them alive whenever injury should beset them.

Sakura knew that Sasuke's repressed memories were coming out, and it was starting to worry her as well, she too looked at Naruto's direction, she wondered, _'Does Naruto have something to do with Sasuke's past?'_

She wondered, just how deeply connected was Naruto to Konoha's confidential cases.

A few hours later:

Naruto had found a luxurious apartment on the northern part of the village, being near the training grounds and near the Hyuuga and Uchiha compounds, after finding the said apartment, the blonde pulled out an unhealthy wad of cash from his pocket and slapped the rude desk boy in front of him after he heard the words, 'demon' and 'hellspawn'. Needless to say, the man was pretty much speechless as Naruto went ahead to his room with all the essentials he had, his clothes and some of his ninja gear.

He saw his room and saw how big his apartment was compared to that makeshift den he had at the Forest of Death. The blonde shivered at the memory as he remembered how the Kyuubi made him take all of those basic survival skills.

He flexed his arm muscles and stretched them before laying on to his new king sized bed.

'**So what do you intend to do when treaty progresses?'**

'_What made you so interested all of a sudden, kitsune?'_

'**Hmph… Incessant brat, I merely want to know your stand in this.'**

'_You should already know that.'_

'**Ah, where would be the fun in that?'**

Naruto growled, _'Back up plans, no doubt this isn't going to go as smoothly as what Jiji thinks.'_

'**What makes you say that?'**

Naruto growled a little and said,

'_He's visibly tempting Kumo, Kitsune, he's playing with them, if Hinata were to be kidnapped again, we'd be in a wagon load of shit.'_

The Kyuubi chuckled at that, **'So basically thinking of a counter strategy in case anything happens…'**

Naruto mentally affirmed, the Kyuubi gave a sinister grin

'**You have come far from your survival skills brat, that I can guarantee you.'**

He paused for a moment and then said,

'**I think it's time for you to learn more about that little doujutsu, your father and I had accidentally installed in you.'**

Naruto then nodded,

'**As with that accursed blood of the Uchiha, ****your doujutsu has another level with it, too bad the only way to access it is to break the two minute time limit mark.'**

Naruto was surprised at this,

'**It somehow integrated itself fully when you were in Nami when it happened, ****I don't know the specifics of what it can truly do, but rest assured, it has a high possibility on bordering on a Jikan-kuukan (Time and Space) type Ninjutsu.'**

Naruto suddenly raised his lower torso sitting on his bed, time and space Ninjutsu? He had only known one person that could do this successfully!

He then got down and went to look on the best person who was close to the Yondaime, Hatake Kakashi…

A grin plastered on his face, as he was about to get out, it was then replaced when he remembered that he had not known where the unsurprisingly lazy Jounin would always hang out or let alone live.

Someplace in Konoha:

Kakashi was strolling along the sides of his favourite side of the bookstore, the adults only section. A bright orange book had caught his eye and turned his head around.

His visible eye widened in delight as he had seen the latest volume to his bible, Icha Icha Violence

His fingertips were shaking as his body was giddy for excitement, just the thought of reading this masterpiece brought joy to his miserable and lonesome career.

'_Hmm…__ I wonder if the rumoured movie's lead actress will be played by Fujikaze Yukie…' _

Naruto's apartment:

Naruto sighed in defeat instead, getting back to his room and changed his clothes; at least he could sleep for tonight.

The Next day:

Naruto yawned out loud as he extended his arms upwards when he was out of the apartment, going out of the northern district; he proceeded to the eastern section of the village, where the training grounds were closest. As he proceeded to the route that he had used so long ago, he saw Sakura simply jogging her way to the said grounds and then saw Hinata who looked distraught as she walked towards the grounds,

Curious to her situation, Naruto quickly made a dash for his friend as he called her attention and waved, "Hinata!"

Hinata's thoughts were disrupted when she saw Naruto waving at him, the thoughts on the instructions about the Kaiten had to be taken to the side first, Naruto was talking to her,

"What's wrong, Hinata? Got something on your mind?"

Hinata smiled, it was always Naruto that she could confide too, next Kurenai of course. She couldn't help but tell Naruto what she had in mind whenever he noticed her delving into things too deep.

As it was, she said to Naruto, "I-I'm thinking about what father said about me when he… heard of our mission to Kumo."

Already, Naruto's left eyebrow was raised, there was still no team conference held between the teams, usually, this would occur days or even hours before the mission, the Hokage had already informed them, but strategic values and logistics were still nowhere there, as Kakashi had mentioned to them during one of their team exercises, "Preparation is everything."

"He wanted to tell me that the mission is too much for me and that he wanted to pull me out, however, if I manage to do the Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Trigrams: Rotation), then… He'll think about it…"

She paused for a moment, as she felt some of the weight was beginning to be lighter as it somehow escaped her,

"But as a… Stipulation… F-father wanted me to learn Kaiten on my own… I don't know how I will do it but… I'm afraid I'm going to pull o-out on this mission…"

Hinata looked down, obviously, her confidence was slowly being shot down.

Naruto had recognized that look exactly as he did with Itachi, it was there, that lingering feeling of helplessness that slowly consumed the person that it had, it shattered everything within the person, their thoughts, mindset, and confidence, all seem like fragile glass that within its grasp.

Naruto frowned at this, he didn't want to see it in any other person… No, if he could, he would help them, any way he can

"Does the mission mean so much to you? Aren't you scared? These are the same people that wanted to kidnap you…" Naruto mentioned, Hinata just shook her head and smiled,

"No, Naruto-kun, although they wanted to kidnap me, I still think that we should give them a chance, blind judgment is condemnation, it is… How the villagers saw you, that is why, I'm willing to forgive…"

It was true that was why Hinata befriended him, like that, Naruto was already dear to her, and Naruto understood why Hinata wanted to go to this mission,

"You want to make amends with Kumo?"

He asked, Hinata nodded and said, "And seek an apology to the assailant's family, whom my father killed."

Naruto then felt his head down in shame, it felt like he was a villain, he didn't want Hinata to be part of the team, simply because of her illustrious past with Cloud, not only that, Naruto had some form of loathing with Kumo for what they did, but, hearing Hinata's advice like that, it was as if he was one of the villagers, he judged before he knew, he generalized rather than specify.

Naruto just lowered his head in shame and then said, "Okay, if you don't know where to start with Kaiten, how about we talk about, what are the basics of Jyuuken?"

Hinata then answered, "It is technically a taijutsu form that is semi-stationary, we can not perform well when we move in different directions, as our style relies heavily on footwork and then precise timing to strike the opening."

She then grabbed a small twig and made a circle on the ground, "Beginners are taught the Jyuuken at first with this small circle, as the basis of our taijutsu style is this very circle, we are taught how to do different steps with this circle which requires either movement of both feet, or with one feet while the other is anchored at the center."

Naruto nodded, so the circle drawn was the line that guided the Hyuugas for their footwork, and the circumference served as the key positions where they could strike, a primarily defensive taijutsu.

Naruto then cupped his chin and began to think, coming up with a solution, he said to Hinata,

"How about we test different footwork techniques first, I think with this much movement, you could invent countless possible jutsu that could devastate your enemies, your dad and maybe your elders don't realize this now, but I can see countless possibilities with your taijutsu, moves like this are pretty destructive, especially when facing a speedy fighter, chances are, you could cause enough collateral damage to kill him in one blow." Naruto then asked,

"Tell me Hinata, does footwork add power to a palm strike?"

He got a nod and then Hinata said, "Naturally, all moves that require a pre-manoeuvre are powerful, adding a spin before a strike makes us gather chakra more and expel it through our hands, but it is difficult since the more time we gather chakra, the less likely we'll be able to strike a vital organ."

"I get it… So now that you have this circle, let's try you force through my defense with your palm strike, and then succeed it with a much stronger attack."

Hinata looked concerned, "But… You could get hurt…"

"Ah, a few punches never killed me, I have a ridiculously unexplained regeneration rate. So it's fine." Naruto then grinned, as he held up the seal of ram together in his hands and said,

"Fuuton: Sou Reppuken (Wind Release: Twin Violent Gale Fist)"

Naruto's forearms began to accumulate the wind as its small visible tendrils began to surround his fore arms and then started to circle violently,

"Try to break through this with your attacks, Hinata!" Said Naruto, lunging at Hinata.

Surprised, Hinata reacted on instinct jumping on a tree stump and activating her Byakugan, as soon as her vision widened, she saw Naruto already making his way at her, Hinata turned around, sliding her left leg and then forcing chakra to her palms, she deflected Naruto oncoming right fist by tapping the back of Naruto's hand.

The wind slightly shifted, but Naruto regained his control, Hinata remained on the tree stump, as long as she had the higher ground and the basis for her circle, she had the advantage. The blonde quickly took notice of this, luckily, the stump was wide enough to allow a small brawl inside, and Hinata was at the center so he definitely had a disadvantage if he wanted to fight on even grounds with her,

Naruto then let his jutsu on his left hand release itself blasting a gust of wind straight to Hinata, Hinata barely dodged the attack, managing to graze her left jacket sleeve, with that, Naruto was already above her, about to deliver another whirlwind punch, blocked his fist by using both her hands and forcing Naruto to flip back and landing at the edge of the said stump.

Naruto activated his technique yet again and then proceeded to come at Hinata, the sleeves on his arms rustled as the wind howls furiously on Naruto's arms.

Hinata looked worried for a moment; she had seen Naruto perform unorthodox styles when fighting, going as far as almost injuring himself in the process. It's not that Naruto was a complete novice in Taijutsu; it was that most of his attacks take a huge amount of risk that pays off every time. It was either the blonde knew where his opponent would attack and come up with split second counter, or he was really, really, REALLY lucky.

In which case however, Hinata then parried Naruto's right hand with her left and then aimed a palm strike straight to his chest, Naruto then jumped up and over Hinata, he then began rolling in mid-air, an attempt to get to Hinata's back.

Hinata, being a Hyuuga, took this opportunity as a miscalculation on Naruto's part, to turn her back and gathered more chakra into her palm, facing the blonde.

Naruto cursed as he got on the wooden floor and faced Hinata, who had already a palm strike launched at him, surprised by the move, Naruto tried to block with his wind enhanced arms only to stagger back as the blow that Hinata unleashed destroyed his defence, the wind dying down by the blow.

'_I see it!'_ Hinata then spun again, sliding her right foot for a moment, and then cupping her hands, placing the base of her wrists together, she gathered more chakra than her previous attack, only this time on both hands.

She then slammed her palms on Naruto's abdomen, effectively sending him flying away from her, a shroud of a lion made of chakra felt like being horned from a bull, it sent him skidding across the forest floor and finally being stopped as his back was embedded on a rock that had halted his trajectory.

"Ouch…" Naruto muttered, Hinata quickly made her way towards the blonde out of worry, that blow could have resulted in multiple injuries!

Surprisingly, Naruto got out of the rock and sat down on the ground, feeling his body ache from Hinata's blow.

"What the hell was that? I never saw your movement close to that when we were in the academy!" Said the blonde Hinata merely giggled and sat down next to him and said,

"I-It was just instinct… I just poured whatever I can in to that last attack. I'm sorry of I had hurt you…"

Naruto stretched his arms a bit and he noticed small spots on his arms. In curiosity, the blonde raised his sleeve and found multiple spots on it, when he touched it, it was as painful as loosing a few teeth.

"Ouch… That hurts!" The blonde yelled, as he panted and then said, "Damn and I can barely move it either!"

He hadn't noticed it, but when he became aware of it; his body began to send electrical impulses to his brain that indeed, it ached.

Hinata was surprised at this, she activated her Byakugan just to be sure…

And sure enough, she could see countless dots on Naruto's chakra pathways, and these 'dots' that Hinata continued to repel with her chakra before, seemed to be closed, it only meant one thing…

"Tenketsu…" Hinata muttered, she hadn't noticed it during her battle with the blonde as she was focusing on how and when Naruto will attack… But now… It was all visibly clear, her Byakugan improved.

"H-Here Naruto-kun… Let me try opening them…" Hinata then grabbed his left arm with her left hand to support it and aimed her right index and middle finger on one of the tenketsu points.

Quickly applying chakra to her fingertips, she had hit the pressure points fast and not so delicately causing the blonde to wince in pain.

Hinata's vision confirmed that the spots were now open again when she saw the flow of chakra going back to the blonde's arm, she then did it to his other arm and the blonde reluctantly agreed. As soon as he could feel his arms again, albeit painfully, Naruto asked Hinata,

"Ne, Hinata… Does the technique have a name yet?"

Hinata shook her head, "I told you that it was just a moment of impulse…"

"Okay, since you don't, I do! It's a really a kickass name too!" Said the blonde enthusiastic as ever. He then stood up and said,

"How about, Shishisenkou? (Lion's War Cry)" Asked Naruto and Hinata nodded, it was a fitting name for an attack that seemed to take a shroud of a lion's head.

Just then, after his conversation with Kyuubi late last night, Fuujin had entered his mind and whispered to the blonde,

'_It's beginning…'_

With Sakura:

Sakura was grasping her right hand as she opened and closed it, something felt weird inside her, as if it was something that was making her hand numb… She didn't know what to do so she just rested for a moment. But even when resting, her right hand still felt like it was being electrocuted, and it was getting worse, by then, the ground around her area began to shake slightly, and she could here sounds of metal clashing against metal, all the while her hand became more and more painful. It was unbearable! The pain was reaching her limit!

With a loud yell, countless metallic spikes bursts from the ground around Sakura reaching outwards with the pink haired kunoicihi knocked out in the center…

Thus, her exposure to Naruto's Tenki has given birth to Kinzokuton… (Metal Release)

Kakashi:

Kakashi's remaining visible eye was itching, he didn't know why, but it felt irritating, going for the bathroom, he went to his sink and washed his visible eye with warm water thinking it would do the job, but it didn't stop there, furiously rubbing the eye, Kakashi looked up and stared at the mirror above the sink, his visible eye widened, there he could see, a fully matured Sharingan, three tomoe and all…

"H-How…" Kakashi did not finish his thoughts as he removed the nightcap covering his left eye and indeed, it was Obito's Sharingan, with the scar still present.

Kakashi then let the chakra discontinue to the flow of his eyes, and the itch stopped and also, the pair of Sharingan eyes vanished. He frowned, he didn't know why, but he had to let the Hokage be informed about this predicament.

Sasuke:

Sasuke began to breathe heavily, his whole body was shaking after training, as if countless jolts of electricity was coursing through his body, getting up he held on to a rocky surface and saw it being obliterated by the jolting electricity in his hands, a look of surprise and awe was evident from Sasuke's face, and then, it turned into a grin,

Whatever this power was, this would surely help him in killing Itachi, his Sharingan eyes flared and tendrils of electricity shot forth from his body. The sounds of crackling could be heard in the desolate training grounds of the Uchiha complex.

Naruto:

'_Since activating Fuutei, you have been __leaking Tenki everywhere; remember when I said that exposure of other humans to Tenki would cause erratic changes to the said people. We don't know what will happen, but Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura being exposed to you for almost a week, there's a chance that those three will be developing traits that they shouldn't have.'_

Fuujin whispered in his ear, Naruto just mentally nodded,

'_I can't say for certain how many people will be exposed to your energy, as Amaterasu likes to keep things to herself and watch us grumble in curiosity at what happens next. But the adverse effects on Tenki differs from person to person.'_

_Naruto then felt his Tenki escaping from his body, immediately, the seal on his forehead glowed, and the second kanji on the Hiraishin Kunai illuminated as well_

'_The second song is waiting Naruto…'_

To be continued…

* * *

Jutsu List:

Shishisenkou (Lion's War Cry) – Offensive, B rank- A move that is solely for Hyuuga Hinata, the user pushes through the physical defence of the target with a palm strike, then follows a succeeding move with a double lateral palm strike to the chest with so much chakra that it eventually throws the enemy out of range, it comes out in a shrouded image of a lion's head. Based on, Farah Oersterd's skill from Tales of Eternia

* * *

Omake:

**Whatever you do, don't open the door!**

It was a hot day outside of Konoha today, as for one Uzumaki Naruto who was now getting impatient waiting for his former teacher back at the academy, Umino Iruka, who had promised him free ramen for a successful C-rank mission, was already two hours late.

The blonde sighed in incredible irritation as he waited and waited outside, in the middle of the sweltering heat of Konoha's summer.

Normally, he would have expected Kakashi to be this kind of late, but being the cheapskate that he is, he would treat one of his precious students to a free meal for no reason at all when pigs fly.

"FUCK THIS!"

Naruto began grumbling and grew even more frustrated as ten minutes went by and still Iruka didn't show up. Oh well, being the worried citizen that he is (and not one to pass up a free meal) Naruto went to Iruka's apartment and came to check on his teacher, whatever it was, something serious was happening and was keeping Iruka from Naruto's free Ramen.

When he arrived at the house, he could hear the sounds of moaning and a voice yelling,

"Who's your mistress!?"

And then a whiplash, Naruto then began to get worried, Iruka was being tortured by some crazy woman!

"Iruka-sensei! Are you alright!?"

Then, he heard the voice of his favourite teacher and yelled from his room, "NARUTO! WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T OPEN THE DOOR!"

"WHAT!?" The blonde asked, was there a trap behind Iruka's door!? Now he was worried, all that ramen goodness was about to go to waste, but nay! Naruto would was then about to bust the door down when he heard Iruka yell

"NARUTO! DON'T BUST THAT DOOR DOWN! IF YOU DO YOU WILL SEE SOMETHING REALLY, REALLY HORRI-MMMFFFF!"

Naruto had heard his sensei being gagged inside, getting impatient, the blonde then thought, _'What could be more horrible than seeing real live visceral display of violence?'_

So Naruto, believing that he had seen enough carnage to warrant something not to make his nerves of steel tremble, he smashed the door down and went inside…

… And saw pretty much a very gruesome scene wherein Iruka was barely wearing anything except for his briefs, spread eagle on his very own bed. His arms and legs were tied up in the four corners of each, and Naruto could have sworn Iruka was strapped on the mouth with a ball that had holes in it, all the while the scar-faced chuunin was telling him to get out in a muffled tone and then sobbed into a heap.

Naruto's mind was blank for a moment and then his view changed to Anko, who was wearing leather straps, high heeled boots that reached to her knees and was cracking a whip. Naruto was drawing up a blank,

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"I don't even want to know… Just ignore me and continue whatever kinky thing you were doing, you guys just screwed up my already screwed up childhood for good."

With that the blonde did an immediate about face and fixed Iruka's door, all the while not looking at the scene that befell him and hightailed it out of Iruka's apartment or anywhere near the vicinity.

Once he got to Ichiraku's, he crawled into a corner and got into a fetal position all the while muttering, "I'm going to my happy place… I'm going to my happy place!"

* * *

Chapter Preview:

Two souls, that grew in the same life, wind up meeting together, their hardships and burdens are the same, but one man shows how to handle them and shows just what their future might become. As the shadow disrupts the agreement of two factors, confusion is abound and trust… Becomes hard to obtain.

Next time: Crimson Howling

* * *

Well that's about it for this chapter, My exams were over and I had to write this when I was relaxing and waiting for my results, and I'm still waiting, just hope that I pass this exam, I need it to get into a pretty good university in the US for my Med Proper…

Well, hope you enjoy this chapter, RnR!


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